Pearl Jam Comes to Town
by BlueTiger321
Summary: Katara goes to see her favourite band, but all kinds of unbelievable things happen to prevent her from going. Will she be able to go to the concert before it's too late?
1. Chapter 1: The Big News

Pearl Jam Comes to Town

BlueTiger321: Hi, everyone! It's BlueTiger321 back with my next original story. As you can see this is a crossover fic featuring many characters from various cartoons and video games, and it features one of my all-time favourite bands, Pearl Jam. I can't explain it, but whenever I listen to a Pearl Jam song, I always think of Katara. Then I thought, "Wouldn't this make a great idea for a story?" So now, I'm sharing with everyone my creativity. And in case you're wondering, I won't include any Pearl Jam songs that have swearing in the lyrics since this is a K+ story. First, the legal jargon: all characters used in this story are property of their respectful owners and Pearl Jam and all their songs is property of... well... Pearl Jam. =P Also, credit goes to MetroLyrics for having easy access to the lyrics to the song in this chapter. So I hope you all enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Chapter 1: The Big News

The morning sun had risen over the horizon on Toon City, a metropolis where all kinds of cartoon and video game characters lived together. Across every inch of the land, the golden rays touched down to whisk away the darkness. Birds began to chirp happily as they soared through the sky while fresh dew formed on the grass.

All over the city people awoke to start off their day. Some were unaware of what was about to happen; others could barely contain their excitement.

One person in particular slept soundly in her bed. It was a fourteen-year-old girl who had a lightly-tanned complexion and long brown hair. She turned slightly to her right side while she continued her slumber and ended up ruffling her bed sheets.

A few seconds afterward, the clock radio on her nightstand had just changed to seven o'clock and activated the wake-up call. The radio turned on and aired the voice of a disc jockey named Seto Kaiba who said, _"Good morning, everybody! It's Kaiba airing live on KTOON – the number one radio station in Toon City playing all your favourites."_

The girl opened up her eyelids upon hearing the radio to reveal her blue eyes. After blinking a few times, she sat up from her bed and stretched as she let out a big yawn. Her bed sheets were pulled away as she crawled out and stood up, revealing that she was wearing a white pyjama shirt and pants. She took a few seconds to survey her surroundings while her eyes adjusted to the sunlight entering from her window.

A call could be heard coming from outside the girl's room. It was a male voice, saying, "Katara! Breakfast is ready!"

The girl, now known as Katara, recognised the voice and responded. "Okay, Dad," she said. "I'll be down in a few minutes."

Katara was about to head over to her private bathroom when another announcement was made on the radio.

_"Just a reminder to all you folks about tonight's awesome concert,"_ said Kaiba. _"The band playin' at Toon City Mega-Dome will be the one and only Pearl Jam!"_

Upon hearing the name of the band, Katara's eyes lit up. It was her all-time favourite band and they were now coming to play live at her hometown. That's when she suddenly remembered something. Turning her head to look at the calendar pinned on her wall; she looked at today's date. Written on it in red marker were the words _Pearl Jam Live!_ surrounded with a large, red circle.

A smile crept onto the girl's lips. This would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and she would make sure that she would be there.

Kaiba continued saying, _"Tickets are still available, but you'd better get 'em soon 'cause they're goin' fast! And don't ask me why a real band is playin' for cartoon characters 'cause I'm not the author of this story! Now let's listen to one of Pearl Jam's hits from their latest album!"_

The radio then began to play the song _The Fixer_. Katara then jumped in the air and cried out in joyous laughter. She stopped afterward and soon realised that she had to be ready for such an occasion.

_Yeah, hey, hey _

Katara had now walked into her bathroom and closed the door behind her. The sound of running water could be heard while she was preparing herself.

_When something's dark, let me shed a little light on it  
When something's cold, let me put a little fire on it_

A few minutes later, Katara had walked out with a towel wrapped around her body as well as one around her hair. A toothbrush was also sticking out of her mouth as she moved it around to clean her teeth.

_If something's old, I wanna put a bit of shine on it  
When something's gone, I wanna fight to get it back again_

The girl then went back into her bathroom to finish brushing her teeth and rinse out what was left in her mouth. Afterwards, she walked over to her closet. Her eyes shifted around to look for the right clothes. She stopped as she had found what she wanted.

"Perfect!" she said.

_Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, fight to get it back again  
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah_

After another few minutes, the door to Katara's room opened to reveal the girl standing at the entrance. Her long hair hung freely from the back of her head while she was wearing a black T-shirt with _Pearl Jam_ written on it in white letters similar to their album _Ten_. It was complimented with blue jeans with the waist short enough to reveal Katara's midriff, and her feet were adorned with white sneakers.

(A/N: I know it's hard to picture Katara in something other than what she usually wears, but please go with it for the sake of this story.)

_When something's broke, I wanna put a bit of fixin' on it  
When something's bored, I wanna put a little exciting on it _

Katara walked down the stairs to greet her family. There in the kitchen were her older brother and her father. Both had brown hair and blue eyes. The brother, named Sokka, was fifteen years old with lightly-tanned skin, blue eyes and short hair set back into a ponytail, and wore a blue shirt with matching pants. The father was named Hakoda, and he was a middle-aged man with a goatee wearing a blue shirt and pants with his hair set back into a small bunch and two individual strands tied to the right side of his face.

_If something's low, I wanna put a little high on it  
When something's lost, I wanna fight to get it back again _

The girl walked in to say, "Good morning, Dad. Good morning, Sokka."

"Good morning," said her father. Looking over his daughter's clothes, Hakoda then figured out something had Katara was in a good mood. Curiosity then struck him, and so he decided to ask what's happening. "So... do you have... anything planned for today?"

_Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, fight to get it back again  
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah_

Smiling, Katara replied, "Only going to the concert I've been dying to see for the last three months!" She then sipped on her glass of orange juice.

Sokka took his head up from his bowl of cereal after hearing his sister's announcement. "Oh yeah," he said sarcastically. "Like we care about your little concert thingy."

Katara then made a pouting face at her brother. Hearing him say something like that about her favourite band was like an insult that she couldn't ignore.

"Well," she said, "you're just jealous that I'm going to the biggest event of the year. So exactly what do you have planned for the day, huh?"

_When signals cross, I wanna put a little straight on it  
If there's no love, I wanna try to love again_

"All right, that's enough you two," Hakoda said, not wanting things to get ugly.

Katara then looked up at the clock and realised she had to leave. Standing up quickly, she grabbed a piece of toast and stuck it in her mouth. She took a bite out of it before walking over to her father and giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"I've gotta run, Dad," said the girl.

"Okay," said Hakoda. "Have a good time, Katara."

"I will... Bye!"

With that, Katara exited the kitchen and left her father and brother to themselves.

_I'll say your prayers, I'll take your side  
I'll find us a way to make light _

The girl was now walking out of her house as she was finishing up the rest of her toast. A sense of glee filled up inside her as she walked. All around she waved at people to share with them her good spirits.

_I'll dig your grave, we'll dance and sing  
What's saved could be one last lifetime _

Katara kept walking until she had reached a bus stop. There she waited until the public transport had arrived. Getting in, she took her seat and waited until she reached her destination.

_Hey, hey, hey  
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, fight to get it back again  
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah _

The bus drove on for a few minutes until it had reached a bus stop in the downtown area. All around, the skyscrapers loomed high above the citizens like giants of metal and glass.

_Fight to get it back again, yeah, yeah, yeah  
fight to get it back again, yeah, yeah, yeah  
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah_

Katara had gotten off at the bus stop. Turning her head back to the driver, she said, "Thank you."

The bus closed its doors and drove away, leaving the girl smiling around at the scenery. She could see all the citizens of Toon City walking around doing their daily business. Her eyes then came upon a group of people she was hoping to meet at this spot.

There were five people spread out among benches in front of a large tree. Four were teenagers (two light-skinned human boys, one dark-skinned human girl and one rhinoceros-humanoid) while the fifth was an amphibian-like humanoid in his twenties. Joined with them was a small creature that looked to be a mix between a monkey and a weasel covered in blue fur.

The first one to notice Katara, a red-haired boy with green eyes wearing red and blue clothing under armour plates, turned away from his friends and said, "Hey, Katara!"

"Hi, Aerrow!" the girl responded, walking over to her friends.

The girl sitting next to Aerrow was wearing a blue and yellow dress. Her amber-coloured eyes went with her bluish-black hair that stood up behind her head. "So, what's going on today, Katara?" she asked.

"Glad you asked, Piper," replied the girl. "I'm on my over to go buy a ticket to see Pearl Jam tonight!"

"I heard about that..." said Aerrow. "It's supposed to be one of the biggest events in Toon City."

The rhino-like humanoid stood up from his spot. Everyone could see his large body covered in his clothing made up of blue, brown and green underneath armour plates that went along with his grey hair and eyes. "That sounds like fun!" he said. "You must've been waiting for this for a long time."

"I have, Junko," said Katara. "It took a lot of hard work, but I was able to save up enough money to buy one ticket. Seeing my favourite band live in concert will be all worth it."

The fourth teen also stood up and walked next to Junko. His spiky blonde hair and blue eyes matched his clothing, which he also wore underneath armour plates. "Man, if only they'd let someone like me become a rock star," he said, "then I'd be playin' my awesome tunes for all my adoring fans."

Everyone around looked to see the boy was now playing air guitar while making his own sounds. The display made everyone else feel embarrassed to be with him as they all made disgruntled expressions. The furry animal went so far as to plug his own ears with his fingers.

Just then, the only adult of the group, who was the green-skinned amphibian-like person dressed in brown clothing with an X-shaped plate over his chest, turned to the blonde boy and said, "Finn, I think I speak for everyone when I say... we did not need to see that."

Finn looked back at the man and retorted, "One day Stork, everyone will be screaming my name."

"You're right," said Katara. "They'll all say, 'Hey Finn, you stink!'"

Laughs could be heard all around coming from everyone except for Finn who only hunched his shoulders and tightened his brow.

The furry animal walked up to Katara. Turning her head down, the girl said, "Don't worry, Radarr. I didn't forget to say hi to you, too." She then proceeded by patting Radarr on the head, which made the little guy chirr with delight.

Katara turned back to her friends, saying, "Hey, you know, you guys should come with me. We'll all have a good time together."

"Sorry," said Piper. "We kinda have our own things to do today."

"Yeah," commented Aerrow. "But we'd definitely come if we could..."

Katara nodded in response, feeling a little disappointed her friends couldn't go with her. "Okay," she said, "but the invite is still open in case any of you change your minds."

"Don't take this personally, but I can't stand being in a hall with so many people," said Stork. "Who knows what kind of terrible pathogens they could be carrying on them!"

All the others blinked in surprise to see Stork's pathophobia get him so agitated.

As the group continued to chat amongst themselves, another figure was walking past the tree from where they were sitting. It was a sixteen-year-old girl wearing a green T-shirt, black pants low enough to show her midriff, and black shoes. Her red hair was tied back into a ponytail, and her pink eyes were set into a sneer as she walked. This girl's name was Vicky, and it appeared as though something was deeply bothering her.

Vicky stopped in front of the tree away from the group's view and made an irritated sound, saying, "I can't believe I couldn't get into that stupid concert! I only hurt that guy a little when he refused to sell me a ticket, and now I'm banned from the Mega-Dome! I'm so mad I feel I could take it out on a total stranger for no reason!"

Just then, she heard laughter coming from the other side of the tree. Out of curiosity, she stuck her head around to find Katara and her friends still chatting.

"Well, I better get going now," said Katara. "I want to get my ticket before they're all gone."

"All right," said Aerrow. "We'll see ya later!"

"Be sure to bring back a T-shirt for me!" said Piper.

"Me, too!" said Junko.

"Sorry, but I don't think they make them Wallop-sized, Junko," said Katara.

"I hope you have a good time, Katara," said Aerrow.

"I know I will," replied the girl. "After all, it is Pearl Jam."

Hearing the band's name made Vicky gasp, which she followed up with narrowing her eyes and grunting angrily.

"Okay, guys," said Katara. "Bye!" She walked away from the group and waved to them. A smile formed on her face as she saw them waving back at her.

The only one who wasn't pleased was Vicky, and she grunted again when she stood alone behind the tree.

"I can't believe this!" she said. "Just when I'm denied from going to the show, I see that little goody-goody going there like she was rubbing it in my face!"

Vicky looked up to her head while she stuck her finger to her chin. At that moment, a plan formed into her head while she made a devilish smile. It was something so sinister that only she could ever imagine it.

"Well," she said, "if I can't go to the concert, I'll make sure that girl can't go, either!"

Vicky followed up with her evil laughter. Walking away, she would follow after Katara to make sure that she would make another person as miserable as her.

* * *

BlueTiger321: I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter.

Katara: Hooray! I get to go see Pearl Jam!

Vicky: Oh, no you won't!

Katara: You don't scare me, Icky Vicky!

Vicky: *grunts angrily* Why does everyone call me that?!

BlueTiger321: So folks, stay tuned for the next chapter. Until then...

Katara: Read and review!


	2. Chapter 2: Catching the Thief

Chapter 2: Catching the Thief

BlueTiger321: Hi, and welcome to the next chapter. Now Katara is going to get her ticket, but Vicky thinks otherwise. Let's see how things will turn out.

Katara was now walking to her destined area. She was only a few yards away and it was just within reach. To her, it would only be a matter of time until she would get what she needed to achieve her deepest desire.

As she walked, she looked on ahead to see the large, semi-circular building. It stood out with its stone pillars and banners gently flapping against the wind. Windows were placed around the sides, and its roof had been partially opened. A line-up of people was standing in front of a booth where a woman named Selma Bouvier (_The Simpsons_) sat with an indifferent look on her face behind the window.

Katara knew that she was at the Toon City Mega-Dome. What made her even more content was seeing the line-up didn't have a lot of people, so she would be able to buy her ticket much faster.

_This is it_, she thought.

Hastening her pace, the girl got into the line-up and waited patiently for her turn. She soon breathed a sigh of relief knowing that all her efforts for this moment would finally be worth all the hard work.

What should've been only a few minutes seemed like an eternity to Katara as she slowly made her way up the line. Tilting her head to the side, she saw that only two people were in front of her. Her excitement could barely be contained as a wide grin formed on her face. Soon she would have her ticket, and all she needed to do was to remain patient for a little while longer.

Out from behind one of the Mega-Dome's many pillars sprang Vicky. The wicked girl had managed to follow Katara to the spot and was now keeping her distance. Vicky looked on through her narrowed eyes, seeing that the girl she suddenly despised was now close to acquiring her ticket.

Stepping back behind the pillar, she rubbed her hands together and said, "Perfect. That little brat doesn't suspect a thing, which means I can smash her dreams to pieces flawlessly! And I know just how to do it."

Vicky then reached behind her back to pull out a white hooded robe. It would be the ideal way to conceal herself in order to initiate her plan. She placed the robe over herself and then brought the hood over her head. Underneath the hood, Vicky formed a mischievous smile while she walked over to the line-up.

Meanwhile, Katara was now the second person in the line. At that moment, all the stress and worrying seemed to vanish and she would now get to see Pearl Jam.

The person in front of her was now leaving, and Selma said into the mouthpiece, "Next."

Katara walked forward, but was suddenly forced backward when a figure dressed in a white hooded robe walked up and pushed her out of the way.

The figure turned its head, saying in a deep voice, "Watch where you're going!" The person then left, leaving Katara with an annoyed look on her face.

"What a jerk," Katara said, watching the figure leave.

The girl soon realised it was her turn to buy a ticket, so she brushed away her anger and approached the booth.

Selma sat there while lighting a cigarette in her mouth. Blowing the smoke out, she asked, "Whaddya want?"

"One ticket to the Pearl Jam concert, please," replied Katara.

"I can see that," Selma said, referring to Katara's T-shirt. "That'll be a hundred and fifty bucks."

Katara then reached into her pocket to pull out her wallet. Just then, a look of fear was frozen on her face when she felt it was empty. She looked frantically in her pockets in an attempt to find it, but it was to no avail.

"Oh no!" said Katara. "I don't have my wallet!"

"Too bad, sweetie," Selma said, unbothered by the news. "No money, no ticket. Next!"

Katara was forced to move out of the line. Despair was now filling up inside her as she was denied her ticket, but what got her more upset was something she couldn't understand.

"How can this be?" said Katara. "I know I brought my wallet with me, so how could I–"

A realisation struck Katara. Now she understood how her wallet had suddenly disappeared. Thinking back, she remembered how a mysterious figure had bumped into her. She thought it must've been at that time when the person had snatched her wallet without her ever knowing.

Now Katara was filled with rage. She would see to it to find this person and get back her wallet by any means.

"That jerk is gonna pay!" she said in a determined tone.

Running off, Katara was now in pursuit of the one who stole her wallet, and hoped she would get it back in time to buy her ticket.

Not far from the Mega-Dome, Vicky was still wearing her hooded robe. She was now smiling after her latest scheme. The only thing she ever regretted was not seeing the look on the girl's face after her dreams were crushed.

As Vicky contemplated this, she brought out Katara's wallet and held it close to her face. Her lips formed into a nasty smile as she held it in her hands.

"Poor sap," she said. "Making someone else unhappy always brightens my day. And since I've got this money, I might as well spend it on something useful."

Vicky soon entered her imagination as to what she was going to do now, but was jolted back to reality when she heard someone say, "Hey, you!"

The wicked girl turned her head around to see Katara a few feet away. Anger was displayed on her face and she was now running in her direction. Vicky was fortunate enough to still have the hood over her face for it hid her surprised expression. Thinking fast, she took off away from Katara.

Now Katara was more determined than ever to chase after the thief. Her legs pushed her forward into a sprint. Sweat beaded from her brow as she ran. Nothing was going to stop her from exacting justice.

Vicky continued running, often pushing past people in her way. She was forced to slow down when she had unexpectedly run into a large crowd. Her instincts were telling her that the girl chasing her wasn't far away, but the people in front of her could work to her advantage. She then slipped into the crowd quietly as the perfect way to escape.

Katara soon came upon the crowd, and took in a few deep breaths after all the running she had done. She had lost sight of the thief, but luckily, she was able to see the figure go into the crowd. It would be difficult, but it wouldn't stop her from finding that person.

The girl walked into the crowd and set her eyes into focus. All she had to do was find a person wearing a white hooded robe. The only problem was that so many people were walking around that it made it hard to find someone matching that description. Still, she kept her focus until she saw someone in a white hooded robe walking slowly from her left. Quickening her pace, she went after the figure. Katara smiled as she thought she had the right person. She was now so close that she reached out her hand and caught the person in the arm.

"Ah-ha!" she cried out.

Katara was happy when she had thought her troubles were over, but she soon looked at the person she had grasped. The person in the white hooded robe was a man who was much taller than Katara with a sword around his waist and leather guards on his forearms (Altaïr from _Assassin's Creed_). A snarl formed on his face as he looked at the girl who grabbed him.

Looking up at the man, Katara had now gulped while she looked at him with a horrified expression. It changed when her eyes looked away to find another person in a white hooded robe running into the crowd.

Katara let go of the man and said, "Sorry." She then ran off to catch the real thief.

Both Vicky and Katara kept running through the streets. Their legs strained as they pushed onward, but the pain would have to be ignored until they were finished.

"Get back here!" shouted Katara.

The shouting only prompted Vicky to run faster from her pursuer.

As Katara tried to keep up with the figure, another realisation had come to her. "Hold on," she said, "I'm a waterbender! I could just use my bending to stop that slimeball!"

The girl then saw her opportunity. There in the distance sat a fire hydrant ahead of the hooded figure. Concentrating hard, Katara stopped in her tracks and got into her waterbending stance. Getting water out from a hydrant would require all her focus.

Vicky looked back and saw that Katara had stopped chasing her. Laughing, she said, "I guess this means she's giving up! Lucky me!"

All of a sudden, Katara thrust her arms forward just as the hooded thief ran in front of the fire hydrant. Water then came gushing out at an alarming rate and hit Vicky in the side, causing her to scream and be thrown into an alley. Katara smiled and shouted triumphantly as she threw her fist into the air. After congratulating herself, she made her way over to get back what was stolen from her.

In the alley, Vicky stood up after the sudden attack. Her robe was washed away from her and she groaned as she stumbled to her feet. Her eyes narrowed as she saw stars spinning around her head. What she didn't realise was that she had dropped Katara's wallet. Vicky soon snapped out of her daze when she heard footsteps. Thinking fast, she ran down the other side of the alley and vanished from sight.

Katara ran into the alley, desperately trying to find the thief. All she saw was the hooded robe lying on the ground, but sitting next to it comforted the girl. She picked up her wallet and was glad to see all her money was still inside it.

"That jerk got away..." Katara said in a disappointed tone. Then she realised why she was chasing the thief and she changed her back to her cheerful self. "But the important thing is that I got my wallet back. I better get back and hope there are still tickets left."

Katara ran back the way she came, unaware that a figure stepped out from the shadows in the alley. It was Vicky, and she scowled after seeing her plan had failed. Now she would have to follow Katara and think of another way of getting even with her.

Back at the Toon City Mega-Dome, Katara had gotten back into the line-up. Now she was even more annoyed after waiting for her turn to buy her ticket once again, but she was at least certain that she would get it this time.

It took a long time, but Katara was now at the booth. She looked around to make sure no one else would try to steal from her and then she made her way over to Selma, who took a long puff from her cigarette and exhaled a cloud of smoke.

"One ticket to the Pearl Jam concert, please," said Katara.

Selma only laughed, leaving the girl with an odd look on her face. Something didn't seem right from her laughter but she didn't know what it was.

"Sorry, sweetie," said Selma. "We're sold out."

Katara widened her eyes in shock upon hearing those words. "What?!" she said. "This... this can't be!"

"Yeah, well, better luck next time. I need to go on my coffee break." Selma then brought up her arms and lowered a board with the word _Closed_ written in black letters down over the window.

Katara could only stand there and feel sadness take hold of her. She desperately tried to get her ticket, and now she had lost her chance. Walking away from the booth, she felt a single tear roll down her cheek.

BlueTiger321: Oh no! Poor Katara! Now she'll never get her ticket!

Katara: It's not fair! Why did you have to end the chapter this way?!

BlueTiger321: Don't worry. I promise you that things will start to look up for you in the later chapters.

Katara: You'd better, because if I don't get to see Pearl Jam, things won't be pretty!

BlueTiger321: So folks, stay tuned for the next chapter and until then, read and review!


	3. Chapter 3: Another Way

Chapter 3: Another Way

BlueTiger321: All right, so now we're on to the next chapter. It looks like Katara has lost her only chance to see Pearl Jam... Or has she? Read on to find out what happens next.

* * *

Not too far from the Toon City Mega-Dome was the famous public area known as Toon Central Park. All around, trees were planted where they provided passersby shade from the sun with their mighty branches. In the very centre of the park sat a large lake, and around it was a winding path. Every person in the park was enjoying themselves, but one individual wasn't sharing their happiness.

Sitting by herself on a park bench was Katara with her face set into disappointment. She felt as though she let herself down because she was going to miss the concert. All she could do now was sit and wallow in her self-pity.

Katara was so focused on feeling sorry for herself that she didn't notice the five people, along with their furry cohort, she met this morning were coming up to greet her.

"Hey, Katara!" said Aerrow. The teenage boy then noticed the look on his friend's face and thought something must be wrong with her. "Are you all right?"

The girl turned her head to her friends, saying sadly, "No. I couldn't get a ticket to the concert."

Piper gasped at the news. She knew how much the concert meant to Katara and learning this new information came as quite a shock.

Out of concern for her friend's well-being, Piper asked, "What happened?"

"I was just on my way to buy my ticket when this jerk swiped my wallet!" explained Katara. "I chased after him and got it back, but he got away. I ran back as quickly as I could, but by that time they were sold out. Now I'll never get to see Pearl Jam!" Katara then held her head in her hands and wept, letting the tears splash into her palms.

Aerrow and Piper each put a hand onto Katara's shoulders to console her. They knew that seeing their friend in such a fragile state would be unsettling for everyone so it would be best if they approached it delicately.

"I'm so sorry to hear that," said Aerrow.

"Yeah," added Piper. "If there's anything we can do for you, Katara, you just let us know."

Lifting up her head, Katara replied, "Thanks, guys... but nothing could ever make me feel better right now."

"Well," said Stork, "at least no other bad news has come up to bite you on the rear."

After Stork's comment, two other people walked up to the group. It was a boy and girl who appeared to be a couple as they held hands. The boy looked to be in his teens while the girl was close to becoming a teenager. The boy's spiky, black hair went well with his blue eyes, and he wore a simple white T-shirt with red trim and a red oval in the centre along with blue jeans and red and white tennis shoes. The girl's long, black hair had a single strand on her left side dyed a deep pink, and it was complimented with her brown eyes and the freckles on her nose. She wore a green T-shirt with a pink dragonfly-like symbol in the centre, blue jeans that revealed her midriff, brown shoes and a brown wristband with a purple gem in the centre on her right wrist.

Junko was the first to notice the couple. "Hey, it's Danny and June!" he said.

"Hey, you guys," Danny said, greeting all his friends.

"So what's new with you two?" asked Aerrow.

"We're going to see Pearl Jam tonight," replied June. "I can't wait until the concert starts. I just know it's gonna be awesome!"

Upon hearing the news, Aerrow and Piper set their faces into panic. Katara was definitely not in the mood for hearing about this kind of thing, and they knew that June, though she didn't know what was going on, would only make things worse. Aerrow tried his best to keep June from saying the wrong thing by shaking his head while Piper made shushing sounds, but it was too late.

June didn't notice the gestures being made by her friends and so she kept speaking. "There can't be anything better than going to see a really great band live in concert!" she said. This had now filled up Katara with rage.

"Yeah," agreed Danny. He then turned his gaze over to Katara. "How about you, Katara? Don't you think it'll be awesome? We'll all go together and--"

Danny was cut off when Katara jumped up from the bench and let loose her fury. "Stop it! Just stop it, both of you! I don't need to be reminded about what I _can't_ see tonight! But just so you know – yes, I do think it will be awesome but I won't be able to experience it! And now you two are rubbing it in my face, and it's only adding insult to injury! I don't deserve this kind of torment after what I've been through so I would appreciate it if you two would just can it!"

Katara was done with her outburst and took in a few deep breaths, leaving everyone else with shocked expressions. Never had they seen their friend so enraged before, but they couldn't blame her because she had a good reason.

Stork then whispered to Junko, "I take back what I said earlier."

Danny turned to Aerrow and asked, "What's wrong with Katara?"

"She couldn't get a ticket to the concert," replied the boy.

"Katara, I'm so sorry," said June, hanging her head in shame. "We didn't know and still we kept on yakking."

Katara turned her back to her friends and only rolled her eyes at them. "Saying sorry isn't going to make things better," she said. "I'm still going to miss out on the one thing I've been dying to see for a long time, and there's nothing I can do about it."

Sensing her hostility, Finn tried to alleviate Katara's stress. "Hey, c'mon now," he said. "Maybe you just need to calm down."

"Calm...?" said Katara. She couldn't believe one of her friends would say that to her.

At that moment, the girl turned around to show everyone her face, which was now set into frustration. "I'm completely calm!" she snapped.

(A/N: Imagine the ultra-insane face Katara made in the episode _The Chase_. That's got to be one of the best scenes from Avatar! XD)

Finn immediately brought up his hands and had a sheepish grin on his face. Not wanting to feel Katara's wrath, he slowly backed away and hid behind Junko.

The girl drew in a deep breath, and she calmed down like Finn suggested. "I'm sorry, you guys," she said. "I'm just so frustrated about this whole thing, and I shouldn't have taken it out on any of you."

"Don't worry about it," said Danny. "But don't go beating yourself up over this..."

"Yeah," said Piper. "Why don't we spend the whole day together? We can do whatever you want."

"Thanks," said Katara, "but if you don't mind, I'd rather be alone right now. I'm not in the mood to do anything."

Everyone then saw their friend was now sinking back into her depression. Radarr even chirped sadly for having to see his friend this way. While they were skeptical about Katara's decision, they had to respect it for her sake.

"Okay," said Aerrow, "but give us a call if you change your mind."

"I will..." said Katara.

All of Katara's friends then walked away from her waving goodbye, and so the girl sat down back on the park bench. In her mind, she knew that spending time with her friends would be able to cheer her up, but something else was pushing against her. Now she could just sit alone and question what was making her feel this way.

* * *

Not long after her friends had left, Katara looked up to see someone else coming her way. The person approaching her filled her with both comfort and annoyance, knowing who it was and what she figured this person was going to say. There was Sokka and he had a serious look as he walked over to Katara.

The boy sat down next to his sister and calmly said, "Hey, Katara."

"Hey, Sokka," she replied. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just walking through the park and I bumped into your friends on the way over here. They told me everything, so I--"

"So you came here to gloat?" Katara interrupted.

Sokka was taken aback by the remark. Brushing if off, he said, "No, I came here to try and make you feel better."

"Why should you be concerned about how I feel right now?" said Katara. "You don't even care about the concert!"

"Yeah," he agreed, "but I do know how much it means to you. Believe it or not, Katara, but I care about seeing you happy. You do so many things for me, and as your older brother I feel that I should make you happy."

Katara paused for a moment to take Sokka's words into consideration. Never had she thought about her brother feeling this way towards her.

"Well, thanks for trying..." said Katara, "but there's still no way for me to get into the concert now, anyway. It's hopeless."

As the two of them were talking, someone walked up from the hill behind the bench where they were sitting. It was Vicky, and she managed to follow Katara all the way to the park. There she saw the girl moping and figured that she must not have gotten her ticket. The thought of this made her rub her hands together devilishly.

"Finally!" she said. "I've made sure that that goody two shoes won't be going, either!"

Katara and Sokka continued to talk, unaware of the person behind them.

"C'mon," said Sokka. "The Katara I know wouldn't give up so easily. There's gotta be another way for you to go to that concert. All we have to do is find out what it is."

In that instant, a large man named Coop (_Megas XLR_) wheeled in a hot dog cart across from where the siblings were seated. On it was a radio where the disc jockey, Seto Kaiba, was making another announcement.

"_Welcome back to KTOON – the number one radio station in Toon City!_" said Kaiba. "_Now here's a treat for all you listeners out there: we will be giving away a ticket to tonight's Pearl Jam concert! All you have to do is be the first person to call in and answer this question: What is Eddie Vedder's real name?_"

Katara's eyes lit up when she heard the announcement. Being a fan of Pearl Jam, she knew the answer to that question.

"You see?" said Sokka. "Things are starting to look up already!"

"You're right!" said Katara. "This time, I'm going to get my ticket!"

"Well then, let's get going!"

The two of them got up from the park bench. Katara had the hope that she would be the one to win the contest so she could finally go to the concert. What the two siblings didn't know was that Vicky saw and heard everything, and now she was infuriated.

"I can't believe that little twerp!" she said. "Just when I find out I've smashed her dreams, she gets another shot! Well, we'll see if she can go to the concert if I'm in the way!"

Vicky followed up her next plan with maniacal laughter. Now she was more determined than ever to make sure Katara wasn't going to go see Pearl Jam.

* * *

BlueTiger321: So, it looks like Katara is getting another chance at going to the concert. Will she get it?

Katara: I hope so.

Sokka: Hey, you just have to calm down.

Katara: *looks at Sokka with her crazy face* I'M COMPLETELY CALM!

Sokka: O_O Uh... sure, you are.

BlueTiger321: Well, stay tuned for the next chapter. Until next time...

Katara: Read and review!


	4. Chapter 4: A Rough Travel

Chapter 4: A Rough Travel

BlueTiger321: Hi, and welcome to the next chapter everyone! So now it seems that Katara has another chance to get a ticket to the show, but will she be able to get it... or will Vicky once again crush Katara's dreams underneath her feet? I'll let you all see what happens when you read it. Enjoy!

* * *

Katara and Sokka walked through the streets of Toon City. People around the two bustled about to do their daily business. Katara didn't pay heed to what was going on around her, but she was still able to make her way around the crowd. After hearing about the contest on the radio, the girl had high hopes of winning.

The two siblings continued walking until they stopped at a bus stop. There, they saw a man named Nathan Copeland (_No More Heroes 2_) was sitting on the bench with a boombox next to him. The radio just happened to be turned on to the right station where the contest was being held.

Katara figured this was now far enough so she took out her cell phone and began to dial the radio station's number. The receiver began to ring until the clicking sound was heard, indicating her call was being answered.

On the boombox, Seto Kaiba was heard saying, "_Hey there! You're live on KTOON!_"

Katara shrieked with joy. Coming from both the boombox and her cell phone was Seto Kaiba's voice, which meant she was the lucky person to call in to win the ticket.

"_What's your name?_" asked Kaiba.

"Katara!" she replied.

Sokka stood beside his sister and could hear everything coming from the boombox. A sense of pride filled up inside him to see Katara was now getting her chance to go to the concert, and he knew that he had done the right thing coming to her.

"_Well, Katara,_" Kaiba said with anticipation in his voice, "_do you know the answer to the question?_"

"Yes," she exclaimed. "It's Edward Louis Severson III!"

"_Katara, you are absolutely right!_" A siren sound was then heard coming from the radio to show that the winner to the contest had been declared.

Katara could only stand there and smile as tears of joy streamed down her face. Before she knew it, she embraced her brother in a large hug while she shouted out, "Yes!"

The boombox's owner, Nathan, noticed the girl had won, so he spoke with an Irish accent and said, "Good for you, girl!"

"_Congratulations, Katara!_" said Kaiba. "_You've won your ticket to tonight's Pearl Jam concert! Now just come on down to our station to claim your prize!_"

Vicky had just come to the bus stop, far enough out of everyone's sight. What she heard upon arrival had now made her furious. The girl she suddenly despised had gotten her ticket after all.

"So," she said, "the twerp thinks she's won, has she? Well, she'll be singing a different tune if she doesn't get her ticket."

The wicked girl slipped away with another plan soon forming in her head. To her, she would be sure it would work.

At that time, Katara finished talking to Kaiba, saying, "Thank you! This is the best moment in my life! Bye!"

Katara hung up and let go of her brother. Relief soon washed over her as now she knew her wish for going to the concert was guaranteed.

"I'm glad this all worked out for you, Katara," said Sokka.

"Well, it wouldn't have happened if you didn't come to cheer me up..." Katara admitted. "Thanks."

Sokka was about to say something else, but the bus then arrived. The vehicle came to a slow stop and its doors swung open to let off its passengers. Looking up, the two siblings saw it was the bus they wanted. They both got on with smiles on their faces and each paid their fare. The bus inside was crowded so they were forced to stand up in the aisle and hold onto bars.

When everyone was settled in, the bus's driver, a man named Otto (_The Simpsons_) said, "All right, we're off!"

The bus moved forward and merged itself with the traffic. It was now a mile from the next intersection, and the light up ahead had just turned green.

* * *

The power box for the traffic lights stood by itself with no one paying attention to it as they walked past it. When all was clear, Vicky popped out from behind the box and a cruel smile formed on her lips. She looked out through traffic narrowing her eyes, and saw the bus Katara and Sokka were riding. Now she knew was the time for her plan to take effect. Opening up the power box, she spied an assortment of wires all hooked into the inside panel.

"Hmm..." she said curiously. "These look important."

Vicky then reached behind her back and pulled out a pair of wire cutters. She then held it close to a random wire and snipped it in two. It ended up sending an electrical current through Vicky's body, causing her to cry in pain until she slumped to the ground. It also caused the nearby traffic lights to suddenly de-activate. All the drivers on the road ended up braking as quickly as they could to prevent a collision. Loud honks were heard from each car as they soon crowded around each other.

Vicky sat up after her shock with her skin and hair charred and small electrical bolts forming around her body. "It was worth it..." she said in a weak voice.

Back on the bus, Otto was peacefully driving and hummed along to his music. It all changed as he noticed the cars all suddenly stopped before the intersection. Thinking fast, Otto hit the brakes and made all the passengers yell as they were forced forward. Katara was so surprised that she lost her grip on the bar and fell to the floor.

The bus screeched to a halt before it collided with the cars. Otto was so worried that he turned to the passengers and said, "Hey, if anybody asks, you all thought I was a good bus driver, right?"

Sokka reached down to help up his sister. "Katara, are you okay?" he said.

Katara was brought back up, and she groaned from being thrown forward. Stars spun around her head while she tried to get her bearings straight.

Shaking off her dizziness, the girl asked her brother, "What happened?"

"There's a huge traffic jam up ahead because the lights just went out," replied Sokka.

The news made Katara feel like her chest tightened up with anxiety. She was so close to getting her ticket, but now there was another obstacle in the way.

"I hope we get moving soon," she said.

What no one noticed was that another driver, a robot named Bender, was coming down the opposite side of the traffic lights. He didn't seem to be paying attention as he talked on his cell phone and had a lit cigar in his mouth.

Bender laughed and said into his phone, "No way, Fry! That is so cool! I'll be over there to check it out."

The robot brought his eyes back onto the road, and he saw all the cars stopped at the disabled traffic lights. A scream escaped Bender's mouth as he slammed on his brakes in hopes of stopping in time. The car's tires screeched against the road, causing smoke to bellow from beneath them, but the attempt proved fruitless as the car crashed into another. The force from the crash was so intense that it sent Bender flying through the windshield, shattering it to pieces. The robot tumbled along the road and dropped the cigar from his mouth while letting out grunts of pain before he settled to a stop.

Bender stood up while dusting himself clean, saying angrily, "Stupid traffic! Drivers these days oughtta have consideration for those of us in a hurry."

What Bender didn't realise was that his cigar was rolling back towards his car, and the crash caused his fuel tank to start leaking. Gasoline oozed along the street and headed towards the cigar, which would lead to an imminent disaster.

Katara was the first one to see the crash and was glad to find the driver was all right. But the next thing she saw made her heart skip a beat. The car was leaking gasoline and a lit cigar was sitting next to it.

The girl shouted, "We've gotta get out of here! That car's gonna explode!"

All the bus passengers heard what she said and, whether they believed her or not, they all started running towards the nearest exit while shouting in a panic. Katara and Sokka pushed through everyone to get out in time, and they both breathed heavily when they exited the bus. Outside there wasn't any improvement as everyone saw the car was going to explode.

The cigar let out a few sparks from its lit end, and one of them jumped onto the trail of gasoline. Flames started to blaze and made their way towards the car.

Katara saw the flames traveling, and knew that it had to be stopped before the explosion would cause a chain reaction with the other cars. Knowing that she couldn't stop the flames, she would have to think of another solution. That's when she noticed a manhole cover next to the car. Now her mind was set as she devised a plan.

Breathing in calmly, the girl got into her waterbending stance and concentrated with all her might. Water then gushed out from the manhole and made its way under the car just as the flames were getting closer. Katara then brought up her hands to raise the water and transform it into ice. The pillar of ice was formed so quickly that it shot the car straight into the air with the trail of fuel dripping behind it. As the car rose into the sky, so did the flames until they went into the gas tank. A few seconds afterward, the car exploded into a giant fireball and a shower of debris descended to the street.

Everyone watched the horrific explosion intently. Their focus then turned on Katara, and chants of praise escaped from their mouths. They were all happy for this girl saving them from near destruction.

Near the scene of the accident, a news reporter named Kent Brockman was walking along with a cameraman to find some kind of news story. That's when they saw a girl perform a heroic feat. The cameraman immediately started filming the action and managed to get everything.

(A/N: For the cameraman, just imagine some random Simpsons extra.)

"Finally," said Brockman, "a news story worthy of my talent!"

The news reporter and his cameraman were on their way to interview Katara when Sokka came up to her, saying, "Hey, I don't mean to intrude here, but need I remind you that you still have to go get your ticket?"

The girl's eyes were set into shock as she almost forgot what she was doing. "You're right!" she said. "I better go get it, now!"

Katara ran away from the crowd with Sokka soon running behind her. With the bus caught in the traffic jam, there was no way they could take it to the radio station.

Kent Brockman was on his way over to talk to the girl, hoping to stop her before she left but it was to no avail.

"Hey, wait!" shouted the reporter.

As Katara and Sokka kept on running, Vicky looked on and saw her plan backfire. She growled in her failed attempt to keep her adversary from getting the ticket. Now she would have to be more determined than ever if she was to succeed. The wicked girl then ran after the two siblings to keep watch over them and to think of another plot.

* * *

Katara and Sokka kept running down the street in hopes of getting to the radio station as quickly as possible. They soon stopped to catch their breath.

"How much... farther... to the... station?" panted Katara.

"I think... it's another... six or seven blocks... from here," replied Sokka.

Katara groaned in annoyance. "If only there was some other way to get there," she said.

At that moment, the two siblings looked up when they heard a growling sound. What they saw in the sky put smiles on their faces. A giant beast was coming down to the ground. It was covered in white fur with brown fur shaped like an arrow, large horns on its forehead, a flat tail and six legs coming out of its body. It made a gentle landing on the sidewalk and allowed the passenger on its back to jump down to meet Katara and Sokka.

There stood a boy dressed in orange and yellow robes with grey eyes, a bald head and blue arrows tattooed on his forearms and scalp.

"Aang!" Katara said to the boy. "Am I glad to see you!"

"Hi, guys!" said Aang. "What's up?"

"Well," replied Sokka, "we really could use your help right now."

"What do you mean?" Aang said, scratching the back of his head.

"I won a ticket to a concert tonight," Katara explained, "and I have to head over to the KTOON station to claim it. Could we take a ride on Appa over there?"

"Sure," said Aang. "I'd be happy to lend you a hand..."

With that, Aang went over to the sky bison with Katara and Sokka behind him. The boy took hold of the reins in his hands as he sat around the giant beast's neck while his friends seated themselves in the large saddle.

"Appa, yip yip!" said Aang.

The call from the boy made the sky bison grunt and rise into the air. Pointing in the right direction, they all took off to head for their destination.

The group was now off in the distance just as Vicky ran up to the spot where they had been. Fatigue set in her from trying to keep up with them but she shook it off, and anger took its place.

"That girl is really getting on my nerves!" she said. "How am I supposed to stop her now when she's in the sky?"

Just then, Vicky set her eyes upon a nearby shop where the owner, a man named Gin Ichimaru (_Bleach_), was secretly bringing in crates. He looked around to make sure no one was spying on him and continued back into his store.

Vicky narrowed her eyes to see the contents of the crates. There on one of the sides printed in black lettering was the word _Fireworks_. Rubbing her chin, Vicky had now got another idea.

The wicked girl walked into the store to greet the owner. "Hey, Mister," she said. "You have something I'd like to buy."

"Oh really," said Gin. "And just what might that be?"

"Well... I really would like to buy those fireworks you've got."

Gin then chuckled at Vicky's request. "Why, I don't know what you're talking about, my dear," he said, feigning ignorance.

Vicky obviously knew this man was trying to play mind games with her, so she decided to cut to the chase. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a large wad of dollar bills.

Gin's smile went wider upon seeing the large sum of money. "Oh, _those_ fireworks," he said. He then went to the back of the store to retrieve one of the crates. "Now if anyone asks..."

"...I didn't get them from you," replied Vicky, as though she knew what was implied.

"It was a pleasure doing business with you."

Vicky gave the shop owner her money and ran off with the crate in her arms. Maniacal laughter escaped from her lips as she ran off to initiate her plan.

* * *

Katara, Sokka and Aang continued flying through the air on Appa above the city. They had just reached a residential area, and they were now getting closer to the radio station. Katara knew that she should be feeling happy right now, but there was some nagging feeling in the back of her head that was telling her things were about to get worse.

Noticing his sister's worried expression, Sokka asked, "Is something wrong?"

Katara was jolted back to reality upon hearing the question. "No, it's nothing," she replied.

As the group flew through the air on the sky bison, Vicky was on a hilltop and had the fireworks ready to launch. She looked in the distance to see the group coming, so she laughed to herself and reached into her pockets to pull out a book of matches. The wicked girl opened it up and tore off a match, striking it against the back to ignite it. She brought the lit match across the fuse of each firework and then took a few steps back. When the fuses were all burned up, the fireworks soared through the air like a flock of birds, heading straight for Appa.

The sky bison kept flying calmly with his owner at the reins. Suddenly, Appa went into a fit of panic as the fireworks erupted in his face. Soon, the entire area where they were was in an array of colours. To Appa, the flashes clouded his vision and the loud bangs sent him into a state of shock. Aang was soon losing control over the sky bison and tried desperately to keep him calm.

"Appa, don't panic!" shouted the boy.

What little effort Aang tried to make was for naught. Appa dove through the sky, causing every passenger to scream as they fell. Thinking quickly, Aang jumped from Appa's neck and brought forth a staff. He then transformed it into a glider and used his airbending to soar through the sky to catch Sokka and Katara before they plummeted to their doom. The boy and his friends landed gracefully on the ground.

Appa had also landed on the ground but was in so much fury that he began rampaging through the streets. All the bystanders could only scream in fear and run away when they saw the sky bison growling and charging madly.

On the hilltop, Vicky watched the whole spectacle and laughed to herself upon seeing how much suffering she had caused.

Katara and her friends looked at Appa, and they knew that he could cause some serious damage in this state.

"We've gotta stop him before someone gets hurt!" said Aang.

"How do we do that?" exclaimed Sokka. "Appa's not just gonna let us walk up to him!"

Katara looked around for a solution until she spotted a man named Max Tennyson who was watering his lawn. This gave the girl an idea for how she could prevent a disaster. Running to the spot, Katara got into her waterbending stance and forced more water to come out of the hose, which put a surprised look on Max. The water was then formed into an elongated piece until it appeared to be a giant lasso.

With a stern look on her face, Katara said, "Sorry Appa, but this is for your own good!"

Katara flung the water towards Appa and wrapped it around his neck. The rampaging sky bison growled in fury as he was forced to stop in the middle of the street. As he pulled against the restraint, Katara strained as she held her ground.

"Hurry, Aang!" she shouted. "I can't keep him like this forever!"

Aang understood what Katara was saying so he ran over to Appa, jumped onto his neck and took the reins in his hands. The boy then made every move he could in trying to tame the sky bison while keeping steady against Appa's attempts to break free.

While Katara and Aang tried to calm down Appa, Kent Brockman and his cameraman had managed to follow the girl to interview her. They had just witnessed what she was doing now and they thought this was another dynamic feat.

"Get this on camera!" said Brockman. "This is sure to make my career!"

The cameraman started filming Katara taming the sky bison. The beast roared once more while Aang pulled on the reins. At that moment, Appa stopped his cries and slowly went down to the street. The joint efforts of Katara and Aang had successfully tamed him. Seeing that the sky bison was no longer a threat, the girl released her control on him and let the water splash onto the road.

All the citizens saw there was no more danger, and so they turned their attention to Katara and cried out in cheers. Katara couldn't help but feel happy with the way people were applauding her.

"You did it, Katara!" said Sokka, running up to his sister.

Katara turned around to say something to her brother when she noticed something off in the distance. There was a lone building with a large tower on its roof that had many satellite dishes attached to it. The sign on the front was what Katara was hoping to see as the words _KTOON_ were written on it in big red letters.

"There's the station!" Katara said to Sokka and Aang. "Let's go!"

"You guys go on without me," said Aang. "I'd better stay with Appa and make sure he's okay."

"Okay, Aang," said Katara. "Thanks for getting us this far..."

"You're welcome," the boy replied.

Katara and Sokka ran off towards the station just as Kent Brockman and the cameraman rushed in to try and speak to the girl again. By that time, they had lost sight of her and now the reporter was cursing himself for not making it in time.

"Why can't that girl stay in one place?" said Brockman.

"Maybe she's off to help other people in need," the cameraman said jokingly.

"Oh, shut up!" snapped Brockman.

Back on the hilltop, Vicky grunted angrily as she saw another plan turn into a complete failure.

"That does it!" she shouted. "No more fooling around! This is where things will get serious!"

* * *

BlueTiger321: So, now it looks like Katara will get her ticket after all.

Katara: It's about time, too!

Vicky: Yeah? Well you're about to get your hopes up, missy!

Katara: Buzz off, Icky Vicky! *shoots Vicky with a large stream of water*

Vicky: *screams*

BlueTiger321: So folks, be sure to stay tuned for the next chapter! Until next time...

Katara: Read and review!


	5. Chapter 5: The Ticket

Chapter 5: The Ticket

BlueTiger321: Hello everyone, and welcome back. Now we're going to see what kinds of things Katara will get into now. I must say, only a true fan would go through everything just to get one ticket to a concert. Well, anyway, enjoy the next chapter.

* * *

It was mid-afternoon, and Katara was now within a good distance from the radio station. She could hardly believe all the anguish she had endured for this moment. Deep down, she knew that true fans would overcome even the greatest adversity just to see their favourite band play in concert.

Huffing as she and her brother ran, Katara was thankful to see that she was approaching the building quickly. They both stopped in front of the glass doors and caught their breath before they entered.

"We made it!" exclaimed Katara.

"Good!" said Sokka. "Now let's get the ticket before anything else goes wrong."

The two siblings walked into the entrance hall. It was an elegant place with marble flooring and white walls. Katara and Sokka were both glad the building was also air conditioned after all the running they had done. Upon entering the building, they were greeted by the receptionist sitting behind a counter, which was a woman named Starfire. "Greetings," she said. "Is there any way I could assist you?"

Katara walked up to respond. "I'm the winner of the contest, and I've come to get my ticket," she said.

"One moment please..." Starfire then picked up her phone and pushed a button on the speed dial setting. "Mister Kaiba, the contest winner has arrived." After a few seconds, she hung up and returned her focus to Katara. "You shall have your ticket in a few minutes."

With that, Katara and Sokka plopped down onto the nearby seats exhausted. Another delay was the only thing that stood in front of the girl's path to her ticket, but soon it would be over.

As Katara was thinking about this, a smile formed around her lips. She considered herself lucky for getting this far because only a handful of people would ever get the chance to do something this rare.

_It's finally going to happen,_ she thought. _All these troubles will seem so insignificant once I go to see Pearl Jam!_

Outside of the building, Vicky crept up to look through a window while everyone inside was oblivious to her presence. Her previous plans had been unsuccessful and now she was becoming frustrated over Katara's unwillingness to yield. But now, she thought, she would make sure that this next plan would cause the girl to wallow in despair.

Keeping her head low, the wicked girl looked through the window to see the disc jockey, Seto Kaiba, talk with someone over the phone as he sat in his chair. Sitting next to him on the desk was a white envelope and he placed his free hand over it.

"That's great, Starfire," he said. "I'll meet with the winner in just a few minutes, and I've got the ticket right here with me." Kaiba proceeded by tapping on the envelope, which meant the ticket was inside it.

Vicky focused intently on the envelope and waited until she had her moment to execute her plan. Her attention was broken when she saw Kaiba stand up from the chair and walk into another room, closing the door behind him.

Seeing this was her chance, quiet laughter escaped from Vicky's mouth. The window was then opened with all her might and she crawled inside the room. Her eyes shifted around to make sure no one was watching her. There was no sign of another person, so now she got to work. She carefully slid her hand over the envelope and opened it, pulling out what she was hoping to find: the ticket to the concert. Vicky placed it in her pocket and was about to make her exit when another thought came to mind. In an act of cruelty, she grabbed a notepad and a pen to write something down while laughing to herself. She tore out the page and placed it in the envelope, making sure it was in the exact spot where Kaiba had left it.

"Enjoy your prize, sucker!" Vicky said to herself.

Her plan was now set into motion, and so Vicky slipped out of the room through the window again and shut it behind her. By that time, Kaiba had re-entered the room and grabbed the envelope. The disc jockey walked out of the room to greet the winner of the contest while Vicky watched through the window. She couldn't wait to see the look on the girl's face when she sees the surprise she left for her so she scampered off to get a good view.

Katara and Sokka continued waiting in the entrance hall. All she could do to keep herself occupied was tapped her fingers against her leg, but the impatience was still getting to her.

Suddenly, the monotony was broken when a door was swung open, revealing Kaiba in the doorway. Now Katara was ecstatic to see this man not only because she loved his broadcasts, but also because he had the ticket with him. Standing up, she walked over to Kaiba to greet him.

"Mr. Kaiba," she said, "I'm so glad to meet you in person!"

Smiling and feeling flattered at the compliment, Kaiba asked, "So you must be Katara?"

"Yes, I am," she replied.

"Well I must say, you should feel lucky to-" Kaiba was about to say something else when he noticed Katara was feeling weak in the knees, and that she was also sweating profusely. Kaiba couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he could tell this girl obviously went through a lot of trouble to get here.

"Man!" said Kaiba. "What'd you do, run through a minefield?"

"...Something along those lines," replied the girl.

Kaiba only blinked twice at the girl's response. "Well anyway," he said, "here's your ticket. Congratulations!"

The disc jockey held out the envelope and Katara willingly took it with awe. All this excitement had made the girl feel giddy, and so she couldn't help but giggle with anticipation. The suspense was now unbearable for her so she opened up the envelope to find her ticket, but what she saw only made her frown, which then turned into anger.

"Excuse me, but is this some kind of joke?" Katara snapped.

"What're you talkin' about, kid?" Kaiba asked confusedly.

Katara took out what was in the envelope and showed it to Kaiba. "Does _this_ look like a ticket to you?" she exclaimed.

The disc jockey studied the paper in Katara's hand, and on it the word _LOSER_ wasprinted in black ink. In Katara's mind, she felt enraged for having to endure such torment only to receive a ludicrous prank.

Kaiba was dumbfounded at what was inside the envelope. "I don't understand..." he said to his defence. "We really did have a ticket."

Sokka saw what was happening and so he stood up to back his sister. "Well," he said, "if you do have a ticket then maybe you should go get it! My sister deserves better than this!"

"Look kid," said Kaiba, "as much as I'd like to help you, I've got a radio show to do. Besides, there's a certain rule regarding our contests."

"And what's that?" Katara demanded.

"Tell 'em, Starfire."

Upon request, Starfire got up from behind her desk and said, "According to our policy, once the recipient has claimed his or her prize, it is no longer the responsibility of KTOON Radio Station."

Sokka could only stare aghast at what Starfire had said. "That's garbage!" he said. "Katara didn't even get her ticket!"

"Sorry, but that's the rule," said Kaiba.

Now Katara was extremely upset. Folding her arms, she gave Kaiba a stern look and said, "I'm sorry, but I am _not_ leaving until I get my ticket!"

The disc jockey saw that this girl was being stubborn so he would be forced to more extreme measures. He ended up nodding to Starfire, and she got on the phone and pushed a button.

"Security to the front desk," said the receptionist.

Katara only scoffed at what Starfire had done. "You don't scare me!" she said. "I want my ticket, now!"

Just then, both Katara and Sokka felt something grab a hold of the back of their clothes. The next thing they knew, they were hoisted in mid-air. Katara looked to her right while Sokka looked to his left and they saw the security guard was a large man named Sagat (_Street Fighter_). Both siblings gulped in fright when they saw the guard's fearsome scowl.

"Get these two outta here!" Kaiba said to the guard.

"Sure thing," said Sagat.

With that, the security guard forcefully escorted Katara and Sokka to the exit where he threw them onto the sidewalk. Katara landed on her stomach while Sokka landed on his rear as they hit the pavement hard. Sagat gave a slight growl to the troublemakers and walked back into the building.

Sokka stood up and dusted himself off, feeling rather displeased with the turn of events.

"Well I'm never listening to that station, again!" he said. "C'mon Katara, let's just-"

Sokka paused when he saw his sister down on her hands and knees. All he could hear from her was slight sobbing, and then he could see tears streaming from her eyes. The only thing he could do was take pity on her.

"Katara," said Sokka, "I'm sorry things didn't work out the way we expected them to..."

"It's not fair," his sister sobbed. "No matter how hard I try, I'm always getting my hopes up for nothing." The girl shifted her position until she was sitting on the edge of the curb.

Sokka had then felt the desire to do what he could for his sister. "Look," he said, "why don't we go home and forget this whole thing?"

"Just leave me alone! There's nothing that you or anyone else could do to make me feel better!"

Katara brought her head down to her knees and continued her sobbing. Seeing this was about to make Sokka say something, but he decided it would be best if he walked away right now. He didn't feel right leaving his sister to wallow in her sorrows, but staying would only lead to an argument and he knew Katara had been through enough this day. With a frown, the teenage boy turned around and walked away from his sister.

From behind a bush in front of the radio station came out Vicky. She had seen everything take place, and she felt she couldn't be any happier. Her latest scheme was a success and now she was reaping the benefits of her work; she had managed to steal this girl's ticket and now it was in her possession.

"Well," she said, "it looks like I'm going to the concert after all..."

Vicky wasted no time in fleeing the scene with her newfound ticket. Her body seemed like a blur as she sped past the building. When she was sure no one was around, she reached into her pocket to pull out the ticket. There it stood in her palm – a white, rectangular piece of paper with the words _Pearl Jam Toon City Mega-Dome _printed in black letters.

Smiling, Vicky let out a cruel laugh. "Too bad for that goody-goody," she said. "But now, _I've_ got to get ready for tonight's show!"

The wicked girl wasn't paying attention to what was going on behind her. There was Aang flying low over the street on Appa. After the fireworks has caused the sky bison to go on a furious rampage, the boy was now there to make sure his partner was doing fine.

"How are you feelin', buddy?" asked Aang. Appa let out a loud growl, which lit up the boy's face. "Okay, then let's go up higher!"

The flying beast brought down its large tail as it rose into the sky. This caused a gust of air to swoosh down over the ground. Vicky was unluckily in that vicinity, and she was forced down by the air while letting out a surprised shriek.

After recovering from the fall, Vicky stood up and growled through gritted teeth at the boy and his bison. She then realised there was nothing she could do about it, and so she dusted herself clean. That's when she noticed something was amiss.

Looking at her hands, she said, "Where's the ticket?"

Vicky looked around frantically to find the ticket she had stolen. Directing her head upward had yielded what she was looking for, but the ticket had fluttered away in the wind and it was too high for Vicky to reach it. She had no choice but to follow it and hope it would descend quickly.

* * *

Katara was now walking by herself down the sidewalk. She was feeling down because her last chance for getting a ticket to the concert was ruined, and now there was nothing she could do to remedy the situation.

"I should've known it was too good to be true," she said. "This day just keeps on going from bad to worse. I should just accept it; I'm never going to see Pearl Jam."

No sooner did Katara finish talking to herself when a small piece of paper dangled down in front of her face. Noticing it, Katara was surprised for a moment but collected her thoughts and grabbed the strange object. The girl brought it close to her eyes and saw the writing inscribed on its surface. The next thing she knew, Katara was screaming with joy when she realised this was a ticket to the Pearl Jam concert.

"I can't believe it!" she cried out. "This must be the ticket that was meant for me! Oh, I can't wait to tell my friends about this!"

Katara ran off through the streets just as Vicky came running up to the spot. Vicky was soon out of breath for having run so far and she had lost sight of her adversary. Anger swept over her once again as Katara had made off with the ticket that Vicky had previously stolen.

"Okay, twerp!" she said. "Now you force me to take drastic measures!"

Vicky now had a serious look on her face. The recent turn of events was now going to make her dish out the ultimate form of payback.

* * *

BlueTiger321: So folks, it looks like Katara now has her work cut out for her.

Katara: Can't you just skip to the concert?

BlueTiger321: Sorry, but I've got something else lined up for you.

Mysterious Voice: That's right. I'll be waiting for you, girl.

Katara: *gulps nervously*

BlueTiger321: O_OU Oh man, that can't be good. Well, stay tuned for the next chapter. Until next time...

Mysterious Voice: Read and review!

Katara: Help!


	6. Chapter 6: Madness

Chapter 6: Madness

BlueTiger321: Okay, so now Katara _finally_ has her ticket! But, as we all know, that's not going to stop Vicky from getting in the way. This chapter will hopefully keep you all on the edge of your seats. So just make sure not to fall off and hurt yourselves. =P

* * *

The darkest region of Toon City was home to the toughest and meanest of all the toons. Everywhere around there would be all sorts of wrongdoings taking place. The streets were never a safe place for the innocent to walk, and those who did were either brave or foolish.

All the meanest toons preferred to hang out at the local bar – the Black Pit. The red neon sign seemed like a welcoming gesture, but stepping inside would reveal a place of chaos.

Vicky was standing outside the infamous bar, knowing full well that she would find someone inside willing enough to become her hired help. She slowly walked up to open the door but then stepped back as she heard glass shatter to her left. Looking down, she had seen a wolf demon named Koga (_InuYasha_) had just been tossed through the window. That didn't stop him as he leapt through the broken window using his demonic agility.

Vicky swallowed nervously upon seeing that and had second thoughts about entering this building. Then she remembered why she was doing this. It was to exact her revenge on the girl who always escaped the worst Vicky could throw at her. The very thought of this filled Vicky with courage.

"Okay," she said. "It's time to get this over with!"

Vicky opened the door and entered the building. The creaking door forced everyone in the bar to stop what they were doing and stare at the stranger. Vicky peered around as she saw the gazes frozen on her.

Some of the sights she saw were rather disturbing. A man named Combustion Man (_Avatar_) stood by a pool table and was about to beat another man named Gambit (_X-Men_) with a pool cue. Near one of the tables, a large alien named Urdnot Wrex (_Mass Effect_) was secretly pressing a shotgun against the stomach of a man named Dante (_Devil May Cry_), who was pointing his sword at the alien's throat.

Vicky felt like she had come at a bad time when everyone's eyes were stuck to her. She felt like running away as quickly as she could, but fear of making things worse forced her to stay inside to conclude her business.

The wicked girl soon approached the bartender, a ghost named Skulker (_Danny Phantom_).

"What do you want?" said Skulker.

Vicky thought that if she didn't want any trouble then she would have to sound intimidating. Getting up close to Skulker's face, she said, "I've got a job that needs to be done, and I'm looking for the toughest guy here."

Skulker only laughed at Vicky's request.

"Is that so?" he said. "Well, you better hope you're not here to waste his time."

"Just tell me where to find him!" said Vicky.

Skulker then pointed over to a dark corner of the bar. The only thing Vicky could see there was a lone table with a chair. On the table's opposite side was a pair of black boots lying on top, but the one wearing the boots remained in the dark. Everyone else seemed to avoid that corner as best they could for fear of interfering with whoever was sitting there.

Vicky walked over to the spot and sat down in the free chair. Taking in a deep breath, she said, "So, uh... are you the toughest guy around here?"

The man in the dark only paused for a moment. It looked like he was about to say something when he suddenly brought something small up to his face. A clinking sound was heard and all Vicky could see was a small flame from a lighter. The flame disappeared and the man took in a long drag from his cigarette. Smoke bellowed out when he exhaled, and the word _WOOH_ seemed to appear in white letters as he did.

Putting the cigarette back in his mouth, the man casually said, "Who wants to know?"

"The name's Vicky," she said, "and I want you to take care of an annoyance for me."

"What kind of annoyance?"

"There's this girl I'm trying to make miserable, but she always bounces back no matter what I do. I need you to step in and scare the living daylights out of her so she'll never set foot anywhere again! But just make sure you do it sensibly, because the author put a K+ rating on this story."

The man paused to take in all the information. "Listen lady," he said, "I'm a mercenary who'll take on any job with the right incentive, but what makes you think I should get involved in some petty squabble you have?"

Smirking, Vicky said, "Because, I can pay you handsomely."

The wicked girl reached into her pocket and pulled out a fat stack of dollar bills.

This made the man stare down and reach out from the dark. What Vicky saw set her face into shock. A mechanical right arm stretched out to grab the bills and pull them back to the holder. Ruffling could be heard as the man felt the reward to make sure it was real.

"Well," he said, "this changes everything."

"That's only half," said Vicky. "You'll get the rest when you're done. Oh, and one more thing: be sure to get her ticket and bring it back to me."

"Fair enough... I'll make sure your problem is taken care of, and you make sure to have the rest of the cash ready when I'm done."

Vicky could see the man narrow his eyes through the darkness, and knew she had made the right decision. Now she was certain her troubles would be all over, and her revenge would be sweet.

* * *

It was now five o'clock, and there was only three hours left until the concert. The sun loomed over the sky, heading for the horizon to mark night time. The streets were now getting crowded with cars as people were heading home to rest.

Katara knew that she had no more time to waste. With the ticket in her possession, she hurried off to the Toon City Mega-Dome as quickly as she could.

The girl took out her cell phone as she walked, and dialled a number. She waited patiently for the other line to pick up, hoping desperately to reach whomever she was contacting. The clicking sound was heard, which meant the other person picked up the call.

"_Hi, Katara,"_ said Sokka.

"Hi, Sokka," said Katara. "Listen, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for taking out my frustrations on you earlier." She paused a moment to let her brother speak.

"_Don't worry about it. I know you've been through a lot today."_

"Oh, and come by the Mega-Dome, because I've got something to show you." She paused once again as Sokka spoke.

"_Sure thing... I'll be there."_

"Okay, I'll see you there. Bye."

Katara hung up, but quickly dialled another number and waited for the other line to answer. She smiled when the call was received.

"_Hey, Katara!"_ said Aerrow.

"Aerrow," she replied, "you're never going to believe this! You and everyone else should come by the Mega-Dome! I've got something to show you!"

"_All right... We'll be there, though I probably have a good feeling what it is."_

"Well, don't spoil the surprise for everyone. Just meet me there."

"_Okay, bye!"_

"Bye!"

Katara hung up and put away her cell phone. Her face showed glee as she was going to show her friends her newfound ticket. They would all be pleasantly surprised by this, especially as to how she acquired it. Katara knew that her friends would agree she deserved this after enduring so much distress.

The girl had walked past an alleyway, not knowing that someone had stepped out from the shadows. A pair of black boots clicked against the sidewalk, revealing a burly man who appeared to be devoid of any colour. His skin was completely white along with his hair while he wore a black leather jacket with matching pants. The jacket was short-sleeved so it revealed his hairy, muscular arm. Printed on his back was a menacing, white skull and cross-wrenches inside a chain circle. On his left hand was a black, fingerless glove, and he kept a pair of goggles on his forehead. His most distinguishing feature was the prosthetic, mechanical arm where his right arm should be.

The man watched as Katara walked until she stopped at a crosswalk. On the side of the street, the girl waited until the signal to get to the other side. Also at the crosswalk were two boys named Edward and Alphonse Elric (_FullMetal Alchemist_) who were awaiting the signal to cross.

The black-and-white man saw this was now his moment to start his job, so he walked over as quickly as he could.

Edward and Alphonse turned around when they heard footsteps behind them, but Katara remained fixated on the crossing sign to change. When the boys saw who was coming, they immediately set their faces into panic and ran away in fear.

Katara then noticed that she was by herself and that a large shadow was forming over her. She turned around to see who was casting it, and her eyes widened in shock. Seeing the man in front of her made her heart skip a beat since he towered over her and was much stronger in comparison. But what really frightened her was how the man looked at her with his cold eyes. Katara also noticed his prosthetic arm, and that's when she recognised who this man was.

Katara's body quaked with fear as she said, "Are... aren't you... the man who... won all those DeathWatch games?"

"The one and only," he said. "And the name's Jack."

(A/N: Jack is the protagonist in the game _MadWorld_, which is definitely not for kids!)

"W-What do you want with me?"

"I've got nothin' against you kid, but I was paid to scare you. And I intend to make sure that job is done." Jack proceeded by holding up his prosthetic arm and brought out the retractable chainsaw. He grabbed hold of the starter and pulled it straight out, causing the blades to spin faster and make the word _VROOOM _appear in yellow letters.

Katara could only mutter a gulp in fright at seeing what this man was capable of doing. But then a realisation came to her: she had already come this far to see Pearl Jam in concert, and now she was so close to getting it. There was no way she was going to back down now.

Setting her face into a determined look, Katara said, "Not a chance!"

The girl summoned up all her strength and was able to bend the water from within the sewers. The water blasted Jack and knocked him down, but Katara wasn't finished. She breathed out and transformed the water into ice. Now the man was trapped in an icy prison on the sidewalk, and struggled in an attempt to break free. Katara knew that her tactic wouldn't last long and so she ran across the street once it was safe.

Jack grunted as he struggled, but soon managed to break the ice that contained him and stood up after the assault. Still letting the chainsaw rev, he shook his head and looked after his target.

"Why do they always wanna do this the hard way?" he said.

Jack took off into the streets after Katara, now aware that his target was willing to fight back.

* * *

Katara breathed heavily as she ran. Never before had she ever been this frightened in her life. Though she still couldn't understand what that man had said to her. Why someone would pay to have her scared out of her wits was puzzling, but that thought would have to wait, because she would have to deal with the man chasing her.

Hearing a grunt, Katara reluctantly turned her head back for a second and saw Jack coming at her with his chainsaw. She knew that she would have to be resourceful at a time like this, and that's when she saw the city hall in the distance. Out in the courtyard was a large fountain, and Katara knew that's where she would have the advantage.

The girl ran as fast as she could to get to the source of water. When she was close enough, she twisted her body around and quickly used her waterbending to bring up a portion of the water from the fountain. Katara then froze the water, making it one large chunk of ice.

Jack was now closing in on his target, hiding a smirk away from the girl.

Now Katara knew was the right time to strike, so she hurled the ice at her pursuer. But Jack saw this attack coming, so he brought his chainsaw straight out in front of him and it grinded against the ice. Bits and pieces of it scattered everywhere and even made the people around them watch the display. What they saw was a girl fighting a man, and both were using unusual means.

Katara saw her attack had failed so she had to think of another plan. She then formed the water into one, long piece and she made it lash out like a snake attacking its prey.

Jack was finished cleaving through the ice, but then he saw another attack coming from the girl. He thought it clever this time the girl was using water in its liquid state rather than its solid state. Retracting his chainsaw, Jack rolled on the ground to dodge the water whip.

Every time Katara attacked with the water, Jack would easily dodge it. It eventually came to the point where Jack was close enough to Katara that he jumped at her and grabbed her hands, making the water splash to the ground.

Katara tried to get free, but Jack overpowered her in his crushing grip.

Getting close to her face, the man said, "Sorry kid, but it's gonna take a lot more than some fancy water tricks to stop me."

Katara frowned but was really leading Jack into a false sense of security. Despite being under Jack's powerful grip, she was able to move her wrists and bend the water from the fountain. The water came up and hit Jack in the face, causing him to lose his grip and stumble around in confusion.

This was now her chance to escape, so Katara ran away in a hurry towards city hall. But Jack had recovered from the attack and was now fuming with rage as he ran towards the girl once again.

Katara knew that she couldn't take on this man by herself so she cried out in hopes she would get someone's attention.

"Help me!" she screamed. "Someone's after me!"

All that shouting had gotten the attention of everyone near Katara, including Kent Brockman. The anchorman and his cameraman were only a few feet away from the girl, and they were in luck as they finally found her. Now the reporter was sure he was going to interview Katara and ask her about the heroic deeds she had done this day.

Jack ran towards the spot but then stopped in his tracks. He saw a large crowd of people where the girl was, and he knew that he couldn't complete his job this way for fear of getting caught. Instead, he would have to think of a new way to scare this girl. Then he noticed that behind the crowd were the large stone pillars standing at the entrance to city hall. An idea hatched in Jack's head as he headed for the steps in secret.

Meanwhile, Katara tried to speak her mind, saying, "Please, someone help! There's a maniac after me!"

Her rant was interrupted when Kent Brockman said, "Young lady, I was wondering if I could do an interview with you and ask about all you've done today."

Katara was getting frustrated that no one was listening to her so she smacked her hand to her forehead.

As all the commotion was taking place, Jack sneaked onto the top step of city hall and stood behind one of the massive pillars. He then took out his trademark chainsaw and swung it into the side of the pillar. Sparks flew everywhere as grinding metal made contact with stone, but the chainsaw easily sliced through the pillar like a hot knife through butter. The pillar was still able to stand in place, so Jack had to push against it in order to make it budge. Jack's strength was able to move the pillar out of its slot, and it started to fall onto the unsuspecting crowd.

Katara took her palm away from her forehead just in time to see the pillar toppling over the crowd. She pointed up and shouted, "Look out!"

Everyone saw the pillar about to fall and so they all ran around in a panic. Katara tried to think of a way to prevent this accident and remembered the fountain wasn't far from her location. She swiftly turned around and brought out her hands to once again bend the water. It proved successful as the water gushed out and headed straight for the falling pillar.

Katara made the water push against the pillar before it crushed anyone on the ground. The pillar's weight was putting strain on Katara as she desperately tried to keep it from falling. The girl tried bending more water out, and it only kept the pillar up a few more feet.

Sweat beaded down Katara's brow and she said, "Run!"

Everyone complied with the girl as they all ran from the scene. When Katara was sure no one was around the area, she let go of her control of the water and let the pillar crash to the ground. A loud thump was heard when the stone column collided with concrete, and cracks could be seen all around the pillar and the pavement.

The danger had passed, and the people had all cheered at Katara for her act of bravery.

As everyone praised her, Katara looked around to see the cause of the accident. She looked up at city hall and saw Jack was there cracking his knuckles and smirking at her. The man was treating this like it was a game. Katara was worried about facing this man, but at the same time determined to stop him. She knew that no one here would be able to help her, so she would have to go to the people she could trust.

Katara took off into the crowd just as Kent Brockman and his cameraman were about to talk to her. They had lost sight of her among the people, and the reporter was left to sigh in disappointment.

"Not again," said Brockman.

"Don't worry," said the cameraman. "At least I got that last act on film."

"Good work, but it's not enough... That girl is the key to this whole story. We've gotta find her!"

The only one who kept an eye on Katara was Jack, and he spotted her running away from the crowd and into the streets.

Smirking, the man said, "You can run, but you can't hide."

* * *

BlueTiger321: Wow! Wasn't that exciting?

Katara: Not for me!

Jack: Well, just wait until the next chapter.

Aerrow: Hey, aren't the rest of us gonna appear in this story soon?

Aerrow's friends: Yeah!

BlueTiger321: Of course! I won't spoil it, but the next chapter is where all of Katara's friends will be in it! So, until next time...

Katara and all her friends: Read and review!


	7. Chapter 7: A Friend in Need

Chapter 7: A Friend in Need

BlueTiger321: Okay, folks! Now it's time for Katara to get out of her latest jam! I just hope she'll be able to do it before the concert starts. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

Katara ran through the streets motivated by fear. The man chasing her was dangerous, but she still couldn't figure out the reason for it. Her last encounter with him had almost caused a disaster. It was as though her pursuer was a one man army.

But Katara knew she could depend on her friends for help, because they were all capable of handling themselves in any situation.

The girl kept running down the sidewalk, glancing back to make sure she wasn't being followed. She was unaware of the group of people in front of her so she ran right into the giant Wallop in the back and nearly knocked him, along with herself, to the ground.

The Wallop turned around after being struck and let out a surprised cry. It turned out to be Junko, and standing behind him was the rest of Katara's friends along with her brother.

"Katara!" said Sokka.

"Whoa, what're you doing here?" asked Finn.

"Yeah," said June. "Weren't you supposed to meet us at the Mega-Dome?"

Katara caught her breath and faced her friends. Knowing that Jack was behind on her trail, it would only take a matter of minutes until he caught up with everyone else so she would have to dispense with the details.

"Guys, listen to me," she said. "I don't have a lot of time to explain so I need you to follow me."

Aerrow quickly noticed the girl's foreshadowing sense and asked, "Katara, are you feeling okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Now Katara knew they were really pressed for time.

"Please, just come this way," she said, pointing down to an alleyway.

All of Katara's friends complied with her and so they followed her into the area. The alley led to a large parking lot with no one else in sight. All that was in it were a few cars that were left unattended. Katara was glad to see that no innocent people could get hurt here.

Piper looked around as if expecting something but was baffled by what her friend had requested from her. She decided now would be the time to get some answers. She gently placed her hand on Katara's shoulder and turned her around so they met face-to-face.

"Katara," said Piper, "why did you lead us here?"

"Yeah," added Danny, "and why do you look so scared?"

"I think I know what's going on," said Stork. "She's trying to protect us from the inevitable doom that will befall everyone in Toon City! But, alas, whatever it is will surely find its way here and turn us into dust!" The Merb then took in a deep breath as he continued his rant. "So we should probably take this time to reminisce all the good times we've spent together."

Everyone paused at what Stork just said, and they all exchanged confused expressions. Now they thought he was crazier than ever to think up some paranoid idea like that.

Sokka was the most concerned for his sister, so he had to get to the bottom of this. "Katara," he said, "will you please tell us why you're acting like this?"

The girl knew that she would have to tell her friends about what was to come. Looking down at the ground and sighing, she thought of the best way to describe it.

"Well..." she said, "I kinda ran into this problem on the way over here."

"A problem?" asked Junko. "What kind of problem?"

Everyone then spun around as they heard a crashing sound come out of nowhere. What they saw was one of the cars had been completely crushed from the top since someone had landed on the roof. The impact had caused the car's alarm to activate, but the sound was the least of everyone's concern. The person standing on what was left of the car got the group frightened for their lives. Katara especially was frightened to see Jack standing there with a sly grin on his face.

Gulping nervously, Katara pointed to the man and said, "That kind."

"...Thought you could get away from me, huh kid?" said Jack. "Well, now you've got nowhere to go. Now hand over the ticket, or else things will get real ugly."

Sokka was left dumbfounded at what the man had just said. "Ticket?" he said, spinning around to face Katara.

"Remember when I never got my ticket from the contest?" Katara explained. "The reason I called you all was to show you guys that I did get it."

"Whoa, that's awesome, Katara!" said Danny. "Now you'll definitely be able to come to the concert with us!"

"Uh, Danny," said June, "we've got a problem right now."

Danny shook his head and put his focus back on Jack. Feeling embarrassed, he scratched the back of his head and said, "Oh... sorry."

Aerrow got in front of the group to face the man, not being intimidated by his presence. "What do you want?" he demanded.

"Look Red," said Jack, mocking the boy's hair, "I'm only here to scare the wits out of that girl and to snag her ticket!" Jack pointed to Katara to make his point. "You and all your other friends need to stay out of my business!"

Sokka got up next to Aerrow, saying angrily, "If you mess with my sister, then that makes it _my_ business!"

Jack only shook his head in disappointment. "Have it your way," he said. "But just remember: you asked for it!"

The burly man held up his prosthetic arm, and once again brought out his retractable chainsaw.

The mere sight of the weapon got Stork so frightened that he screamed and dove into one of the nearby trash cans, hoping that would be his safe haven until it was all over.

Seeing Jack's weapon instinctively made everyone else draw their own weapons: Aerrow drew his daggers, Piper pulled out her staff, Finn readied his crossbow, Junko ignited his Knuckle Busters, and Sokka held out his boomerang.

Danny, however, spread out his arms as two white rings formed around his abdomen. They respectively went up and down his body and changed his appearance. Now the boy had glowing, green eyes with white hair, and was wearing a black suit with white gloves and boots, along with a white belt and collar. A white D was also emblazoned in the centre of his chest.

June jumped into the air and landed next to her boyfriend while getting into a battle pose.

Katara hated herself for getting her friends involved in this, but she had no choice because she needed their help. So she would do her part by helping out whatever way she could. Getting into a waterbending stance, she faced Jack with an unwavering look. She knew that she could easily bend the water from anywhere in the city, so there wouldn't be any difficulty in performing her techniques.

The last member of the group, Radarr, then got up to the very front and did his best martial arts pose to hopefully strike fear in the man facing them.

Jack laughed slightly at his opposition. "Is that the best you've got?" he said.

"No, this is!" cried Junko.

The Wallop then used his mighty strength to lift up one of the nearby cars with ease. He then threw the vehicle towards Jack in hopes that it would hit its mark.

Jack just stood his ground and waited for the car to come his way. At the last second, he swung his prosthetic arm down and sliced through the car. The wreckage went past Jack and left him with no damage. He thought he had the upper hand when he noticed something appearing out of the corner of his eye. A lone figure suddenly materialised next to him. It was Danny reforming after becoming invisible. The ghost boy then delivered a swift punch to Jack's face, and sent the man upward.

Jack quickly recovered after the assault by flipping in the air and landing with a thud on the asphalt. He had been in plenty of battles, so this one was merely a warm-up to him.

June was now getting ready to begin fighting. She unleashed a flurry of punches to her opponent. Jack did his best to block the attacks with his prosthetic arm, but every time the girl landed a hit it felt like he was being hit by a truck. He didn't know why this girl was so strong, but he knew he would have to do something fast. Seeing his chance, Jack grabbed June by her arm. The girl was shocked to see this happen but couldn't do anything to escape the man's grasp. Jack then swung around and pulled June along with him. He let go quickly and sent the girl flying across the parking lot screaming.

Danny saw his girlfriend helplessly being thrown through the air. "June!" he cried.

Thinking fast, the ghost boy flew to June's aid. He grabbed her by her wrist and said, "Gotcha!"

June looked behind in shock at seeing something approaching. "Danny, look out!" she shouted.

Danny looked to see what June meant and noticed that he and his girlfriend were headed towards one of the buildings. Knowing what to do, Danny closed his eyes and focused. Suddenly, both he and June were now translucent. They passed through the building like it wasn't an obstacle. The two then phased back through the building and landed back on the ground. They became solid again, leaving no dents or bruises on their bodies.

Jack was now facing off against Aerrow and his other friends. The red-haired teen took the first initiative by rushing in with his daggers. He leapt into the air and came down with his weapons. Much to his chagrin, he saw that Jack brought out his chainsaw and blocked the attack. Blue sparks flew as the grinding metal met with the crystal-powered blades.

Piper rushed in with her staff to attack while Jack was busy. The man suddenly jumped into the air and away from both Aerrow and Piper.

When he landed, he was met with Finn taking aim at him. The blonde teen fired a barrage of bolts, knowing that at least one of them would land a hit. Jack only smirked and swung his chainsaw around to destroy each bolt that came at him.

All Finn could do was stare in shock and smile sheepishly at his failed attack. "Um..." he said nervously, "...no hard feelings?"

Jack wasn't going to show this boy any mercy. Picking up one of the car pieces he previously cleaved in two, he swung it at Finn, who could only stand there and shout in a panic.

Before he was struck, Junko came to his aid and punched the flying car wreckage upward while shouting.

Sokka was up next. Getting his boomerang ready, he cried, "Take this!"

The boomerang was hurled at tremendous speed and made Jack its target. Unfortunately, the man caught it with his flesh arm and threw it to the ground. He then crushed it under the heel of his boot as if it was an insect.

Sokka looked on with wide eyes and said, "Hey! I just got that polished!"

Now Jack was more furious than ever. He was about to start another attack when he felt something moving around his feet. Looking down yielded Radarr and he looked at the man with gnashing teeth. Radarr bit down hard on Jack's leg, making him shout in pain and kick away his annoyance. Radarr went flying but was soon caught by Aerrow. The teen looked down and saw his furry friend was left dazed with his eyes rolling around in his sockets.

Feeling more enraged, Jack once again brought out his chainsaw and was now more intent on completing his job. But he couldn't do anything as he felt his arm being consumed by water. Without noticing, Jack was being pulled along the ground by the water. Everyone taking part in the action saw Katara bend the water out from a storm drain. The girl had a righteous look on her face. She wasn't going to make her friends fight her battle anymore, and she was going to stop this senseless violence once and for all.

Jack was thrown against the building but Katara wasn't finished with him. Bending out more water, she was going to make sure that this man was trapped. The water encased Jack and was transformed into ice. The man was once again in an icy prison, but this time he would have to fight his way through if he escaped.

As Katara had Jack pinned down, all her friends came to her side with their weapons or abilities ready. The burly man had then broke free from the ice and stood up, looking at all the young faces glaring at him with anger in their eyes.

Katara got up front and said, "Are you gonna leave us alone now?"

Jack only shook his head and scoffed at the comment. He retracted his chainsaw and then shrugged his shoulders.

"I've had enough of this..." he said.

Katara felt taken back by the comment. Confusedly, she asked, "What're you talking about?"

"I'm saying that I'm not gonna hunt you down anymore," replied Jack.

Katara and all her friends then shared the same confused look. So much so that Aerrow and his companions de-activated their weapons and Danny reverted back to his human form. This man had just gone through the trouble of picking a fight with them and now he was suddenly ending it? A weird vibe was emerging from this scene, and Katara knew she had to find out the cause.

"Wait, why are you just walking away from this?" asked Katara.

Jack merely dusted himself off and looked the girl in the eye. "Because you kids have got some real tenacity," he replied. "You stood up to a guy like me even when you knew the risks. It's likely to get you all into trouble some day, but I respect it."

"That still doesn't answer why you were after Katara," said Sokka.

"Yeah," added Piper, "and how did you know about her concert ticket?"

"If you must know, it's because someone hired me to go after her," said Jack. "That's how I knew..."

"But who would want to hurt Katara like this?" Danny wondered.

Jack knew that he had no reason to help the kids any further, but there was some nagging feeling in the back of his head that forced him to give them the answer they needed.

"I know who it was," the black-and-white man said. "It was this redhead girl in a green shirt."

"...Redhead girl?" Aerrow said bewilderedly. This had now gotten him curious. He then faced Jack to get more answers. "Did she have an icky voice and a creepy look?"

"Oh yeah," Jack responded. "About as creepy as they come..."

That's when it struck Katara and her friends. Looking at each other, they all said in unison, "Vicky!"

"You kids know about her?" Jack wondered.

"We sure do," said Katara. "She's a troublemaker, pure and simple!" She faced away from Jack to continue her cries of frustration. "I can't believe this! Vicky was the one who wanted my ticket? And I'll bet she's responsible for all the other bad things that have happened to me today!"

"Yeah," agreed June. "I wouldn't put anything past her."

Jack walked up to the group to reveal another thing to them. "You know," he said, "I don't normally help people out with their petty troubles, but in your case I'll make an exception. I can tell you where she and I were supposed to meet after the job was done... So you can get even with her."

"You would?" Katara asked. "But why...?"

"Call it mutual respect from one fighter to another."

Out of respect, Katara smiled gratefully and said, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," said Jack. "No really, don't mention it. I have a reputation to uphold."

Katara had then walked down the alley with justice burning in her eyes. She was going to show Vicky not to mess with her, especially if her deepest desire was involved.

"Katara, wait!" said Sokka. "You shouldn't have to do this alone. We'll come with you."

The rest of his friends nodded with approval to show that none of them were going to let another terrible thing happen to Katara.

"Thank you guys, but this is personal," said Katara. "I have to show Vicky that I won't take her bullying lightly."

"Then let us come for... emotional support!" said Junko.

"Yeah!" said Aerrow. "We know you can handle this but we'll be right there if you need us."

Katara knew she wasn't going to win this argument. Rolling her eyes, she laughed it off and said, "All right. Let's all go and teach Vicky a lesson!"

All of Katara's friends shot their fists into the air and shouted, "Yeah!"

Jack led the way down the alley when they were done. They were so intent on confronting Vicky that they had forgotten that Stork was still hiding in the trash can. The Merb had popped his head out to check if it was safe.

"Is it over?" he asked in a terrified voice.

Stork noticed that he was the only one left in the parking lot, and he also saw that it was a wreck after the fighting all his friends had done.

Hopping out of the trash can, Stork ran after his friends while shouting, "Hey, wait for me!"

* * *

Night time had now fallen over Toon City. The skyscrapers were now glistening in the moonlight and the street lamps were lit, turning the city into a brilliant display of light against the pitch black sky. But no matter how bright the city shone at night, there was a misdoing taking place where no one would suspect it to be.

Vicky stood by herself under a bridge in Toon Central Park. She waited for her hired muscle to return after completing her job but she was growing impatient. A part of her was saying that it shouldn't have taken this long.

Tapping her foot against the pavement, she said, "Where is he? I've got a lot of torturing to do to my little sister, and I can't wait for him all night!"

Suddenly, the wicked girl heard the grass rustling. She turned around and found a lone figure silhouetted behind a lamppost. Her mind was telling her that this must be Jack.

"Huh, 'bout time you showed up!" said Vicky. "So, did you scare her good? I'll pay you double if you told me she cried! Please say that-"

Vicky's speech was cut off when she gasped at who had confronted her. Instead of seeing Jack, she saw the girl whom she was trying to make miserable – Katara.

The young waterbender had stepped into the light shining from the lamppost, and her face was full of anger. Standing right in front of her was the one person she despised for putting her through so much anguish.

"I-It's... you!" Vicky stuttered.

"That's right, Vicky!" Katara responded. "I'm here to stand up to you and not put up with any of your antics! I know that you're the one who sent Jack after me!"

Knowing that her cover was blown, Vicky decided to admit everything. With a cruel laugh and a psychotic smile forming on her face, she said, "Yeah, that's right! I hired him! And you know what else? I was also the one who took your wallet back at the Mega-Dome! I also shut off the traffic lights when you were on the bus! I set off those fireworks when you were on that flying thing! And I stole your ticket from under your nose!" She paused to breathe and let everything sink in to Katara.

"You know what Vicky?" said Katara. "I always knew you were a psychopath, but I never thought you would do anything this crazy! Why would you go through all that trouble?"

"Because," she replied, "I overheard you talking with your dorky friends about how you were going to that concert. I never got my own ticket, and hearing you going to get yours made me so mad! Why should a dainty, little twerp like you have everything going great for you while I get squat? I wanted to make sure that your dreams were crushed... just like mine!"

Hearing Vicky's rant had made Katara feel both angry and sorry for her. She looked at the wicked girl oddly for explaining her motive, but she decided that no sympathy should be felt for someone this insane.

"Well, I've gotta ask," said Katara. "Are you truly nuts or do you not have anything better to do with your time? Besides, that's no excuse for taking your resentment out on me!"

"Oh yeah...?" Vicky taunted. "And what're you gonna do about it?"

As if answering Vicky's question, Katara spread out her arms. She closed her eyes and opened them a second later as she managed to bend out the moisture from the grass. The patch behind her had turned brown as all the moisture had been sucked out of the ground, but Katara had another concern.

Vicky could only stand and watch as Katara had formed water high over her head. Katara saw that Vicky's shock was long enough to let loose her attack. The water rushed out from Katara's command as she shot out her arm. Vicky took the water blast head-on and was left sprawling on the pavement. The wicked girl sat up and groaned as she saw stars spinning around her head.

"Face it, Vicky," said Katara. "You're a bully who can't stand to see anyone happy! You may try to make everyone as miserable as you are, but that won't happen as long as someone stands up to you!"

Vicky stood up and shook off her dizziness. "Yeah?" she said, challenging Katara. "Well, it's gonna take more than one measly, little twerp to bring me down!"

"Well, is this enough?" said a distant male voice.

Vicky spun around to see where that voice was coming from, and saw at the other side of the tunnel under the bridge was a group of people coming up to her.

Katara smiled when she saw Aerrow, Piper, Finn, Junko, Stork, Radarr, Sokka, Danny and June all join her. They were all gathered to help their friend like any friend would do.

"I hope you don't mind us coming uninvited," said Aerrow, who called out to Vicky earlier.

Vicky was feeling nervous seeing that she was outnumbered, and so she was forced to slowly back away and laughed sheepishly. She would've gone farther until she bumped against something. Turning around, she saw that she had bumped into Jack. Now she knew the odds were tipped in her favour.

"Hey," Vicky said to Jack, "it's a good thing you're here! I'll pay you double if you get rid of these losers!"

Just then, Vicky felt something being pushed into her arms. She was stunned to see Jack returning the earlier payment she had given him.

"What're you doing?" cried Vicky.

"I've had a change of heart," explained Jack. "Hearing all the things you did to that girl made me realise that you're a twisted dingbat, and I am officially calling off our deal."

Vicky turned around with wide eyes and chattering teeth, and saw everyone staring intently at her. Now she was all alone and she could see that she wasn't going to win this battle. At that point, she screamed as though she was having a nervous breakdown. All her previous attempts today had been for naught and she couldn't take any more insanity. She decided the only safe thing to do would be to run away, and so she did, letting her money fly around in mid-air.

The wicked girl kept on running until she happened upon a portly police officer named Chief Wiggum (_The Simpsons_) standing next to his police cruiser. Vicky saw this was her chance to be safe.

Running up to Chief Wiggum, Vicky cried, "Hey officer, I need you to arrest me!"

Chief Wiggum was left confused by this request. "What'd you do?" he asked.

Vicky thought at the top of her head to confess all the illegal acts she committed today. "Well, let's see," she said, "I stole somebody's wallet, I tampered with traffic equipment, I bought fireworks from an unlicensed store, and I snuck into a building to steal something valuable."

"All right, a confession!" said Wiggum. He then pulled out his handcuffs and placed them on Vicky. "Hey, when we get back to the precinct, could you tell everyone that you resisted and I overpowered you?"

Vicky was put into the back of the police cruiser and she laughed hysterically as she knew she would no longer have to go through anymore punishment today.

"Free!" she cried. "I'm finally free!"

The police cruiser drove away with its sirens blazing. Everyone who confronted Vicky looked on to see that she finally got what she deserved.

"Well," said Sokka, "I think that's the last we'll see of Vicky for a while."

"Good riddance..." said Piper.

"Yeah," said June. "Now things will be a lot less icky around here."

Katara was happy to see her problem was finally resolved, but she knew she had to thank one person for making it happen. She turned to face the man in black-and-white with a smile on her face.

"Thank you, Jack," she said. "You really helped me out of a tough jam."

"It was nothing," said Jack. "Well, it's time we parted ways here. I've got my own agenda, you know."

Jack then left the group and disappeared into the night, and Katara and all her friends waved goodbye at him. All was now peaceful until it was broken by Aerrow.

"So now what do you guys wanna do?" he asked.

Danny then realised something very important. "Oh my gosh!" he said. "The concert is gonna start soon!"

Katara's eyes opened wide in shock. This whole incident had almost made her forget the very reason why she was going through this ordeal. Taking out her ticket, she assured herself that now she was finally going to see Pearl Jam without further delay.

"Well what're we waiting for?" said Katara. "Let's hurry over to the Mega-Dome, now!"

All of Katara's friends complied with her as they ran to the Mega-Dome. They were going to make sure that Katara was going to get what she had earned after everything she had endured.

* * *

BlueTiger321: Whoo-hoo! No more Vicky!

Katara: Finally!

Aerrow: Yeah! She's a real pain in the butt!

Piper: No doubt about it!

Finn: Even I think she's creepy!

Junko: So what happens next?

Sokka: Katara's off to the concert.

Danny: Well, it's about time!

June: Yeah, no more waiting!

Stork: I think that's in the final chapter.

Everyone: Awww!

BlueTiger321: Yeah, sorry folks. The next chapter will be the last but don't be discouraged. It's going to be a blast! So, until next time...

Everyone: Read and review!


	8. Chapter 8: The Concert

Chapter 8: The Concert

BlueTiger321: Hi everyone, and welcome to the final chapter! First, I want to apologise for making this story kind of short, but it's because I have a lot of important things to do in my life and there were only so many things I could do with the storyline. But, I digress. I hope you all enjoyed it despite its flaws. And one more note, credit goes to LyricsFreak for having the correct form of lyrics to the song in this chapter. So, I hope you all like the ending because I think it wraps up everything nicely. Enjoy!

* * *

Katara and her friends walked quietly towards the Toon City Mega-Dome. They looked on in the distance and saw it bustling with activity for the upcoming concert. A crowd of people waited outside the doors and cheered as they knew they would be let inside shortly. Searchlights also shone brightly and went back and forth, casting light all across the star-lit sky. The Mega-Dome was truly showing off its splendour for all to see.

As Katara walked with her friends, she relished the thought that now she was finally going to see her all-time favourite band in concert. Her eyes twinkled like stars while she imagined how magnificent it would be to hear all her favourite songs live.

_I wonder what they'll play first_, she thought. _Maybe Even Flow or Do the Evolution?_

Everyone then came to a halt as they thought this would be far enough. Katara, Danny and June turned to their friends, knowing that they were the only ones who could go the rest of the way.

"Well, I guess this is it," said Aerrow.

"Yeah," said Katara. "You know, after everything I've been through today I can't believe that this is really happening."

Sokka went up to his sister and gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "You should believe it," he said. "You deserve this, and nobody should take that away from you."

Everyone else then thought they should add their own words of encouragement.

"Have a great time, Katara," said Piper.

"Be sure to do some awesome air guitar solos!" said Finn.

"Uh... who knows? You might get an autograph," said Junko.

"Make sure to be safe around mosh pits," said Stork.

Radarr walked up on his hind paws and chirped happily to his friends. They all laughed, and Katara gently patted the furry cohort on his head.

"Hey, we better get going," said Danny.

"We don't wanna be late," said June.

Katara snapped back into reality upon hearing the call from her friends. This was the moment she had been waiting for and now it was time to act.

"Oh, right," she said.

Before she left, she gave one last glance to the ones who were staying behind, and she thought how lucky she was to have such wonderful friends and how they would go beyond the call of duty for the sake of anyone.

"Thank you, everyone, for all that you've done," said Katara.

"You're welcome," said Sokka. "I'm sure you would do the same for any one of us."

"Well, I better get going. Bye!"

Katara then turned around to join with Danny and June. The group of three then made their way over to the Mega-Dome while the others looked on with satisfied expressions on their faces. The feeling of knowing that they had helped their friend was its own reward, and they knew Katara had more good things coming for her.

As Katara walked along with her friends, something unusual was coming up out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head and was left stunned. Walking up to the group was a teenage girl in a yellow and orange dress with red pigtails named Sari Sumdac (_Transformers Animated_), and she had her face in her palms while she sobbed.

Katara couldn't turn her back on someone in need so she strayed from the group to find out what was wrong. Meanwhile, Danny and June paused to find their friend walk over to this girl, and the others all looked on with interest to see what Katara was doing.

In a soft voice, Katara asked, "What's the matter?"

Sari pulled her face away from her hands just as another tear rolled down her eye. Trying her best to hold back more tears, she said, "I... I lost my ticket... to the concert... because this jerk Decepticon named Blitzwing... snatched it from me... and vaporized it! I've wanted to see... that concert for a long time... and now I can't!"

Katara watched with sadness as Sari continued to sob. She then felt sorry for her and knew exactly how she felt. The experiences she went through today of having her desire being continuously taken away from her had made her understand that this is something that no one should ever have to witness.

"C'mon, Katara!" called Danny. "We've gotta go!"

Katara overheard what her friend said, but she knew that she couldn't allow an unjust act to go on any further. The girl then took in a deep breath as she reached into her pocket. In her mind, she understood this would be the hardest decision she had to make but it was for the good of an innocent person.

The ticket was pulled out, and all of Katara's friends watched intently. They all looked shocked and then gasped as they were thinking their friend was about to do the unimaginable.

Katara held out the ticket and said, "Here..."

Sari stopped her sobbing to see what was going on, and her eyes opened wide to see what was in Katara's hand.

"You're giving me your ticket?" Sari asked confusedly.

"It's all right. Take it," Katara reassured her.

A wide smile then formed on Sari's face, and she gladly accepted Katara's act of kindness. The red-haired girl then unexpectedly embraced Katara in a hug.

"Thank you so much!" said Sari.

Letting go, Sari then ran off happily with her newfound ticket. Katara was left by herself, having a bittersweet feeling in her mind. All she could do now was look glum for what she had just accomplished.

All her friends walked up to find out the reason why Katara had given up her ticket as well as to comfort her.

Sokka looked at his sister and asked, "Katara, why'd you do that?"

"Because," she replied, "I know what it's like to lose something you care about, and I couldn't stand to see it happening to someone else." Katara now looked as though she was about to cry, but she did her best to hold in her sorrow.

Noticing her friend's pain, Piper said, "Listen Katara, I know you're feeling down right now but you did a very generous thing."

"We're all proud of you," said Aerrow, "and I'm sure that if the members of Pearl Jam saw it they'd be proud of you, too."

"Thanks you guys," said Katara.

The girl soon noticed that Danny and June were still with her and she wondered why they weren't leaving. "Hey, shouldn't you two be heading to the concert?" she asked.

Both Danny and June looked at each other and gave a warm smile. They understood Katara's misfortune and wanted to show their support.

"It wouldn't be fair to go to that concert without you," explained Danny.

"That's right..." added June. "We're always here for each other whenever we feel down, and right now we're here for you Katara."

Katara gave a short chuckle and smiled along with everyone else. No matter how difficult any situation would be, she could always rely on her friends and that is what truly made them special.

With a deep sigh, Katara said, "I guess me and Sokka should go home because there's nothing else we can do right now... and I've had a long day."

Before the girl and her brother left, Finn looked behind in the distance and noticed two bright lights coming towards them. "Hey, what's that?" he said.

Everyone else turned around to see the lights getting closer and closer. The light was so intense that everyone had to shield their eyes with their hands just to make out whom or what was creating it.

Stork then stiffened in panic as he shouted, "It's an alien invasion! Run for your lives!"

The Merb tried to flee but was stopped by Junko. "No, wait!" said the Wallop. "Look!"

The brightness of the lights soon went dim, and the source turned out to be a large, black bus. It slowed down right before the group and they all backed away a few steps to see it park on the edge of the street. They all looked on at its splendour and wondered why such an ostentatious vehicle would suddenly stop here.

The doors on the side were then swung open, and everyone looked to see five men exit the vehicle. Everyone in the group soon gasped as they saw these men were not toons like they were, but instead real human beings.

Katara walked out with bright eyes and gasped as she realised who these men were: Jeff Ament, Matt Cameron, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready and Eddie Vedder – the five members of Pearl Jam.

The band members saw that no one was going to say anything first, so Eddie Vedder took this time to break the ice. "Hi there," he said.

"I don't believe it," Danny said calmly. "Pearl Jam is actually here in person, talking to us!"

Katara couldn't believe it, either. Her all-time favourite band was a few feet away from her, and yet she was paralysed with euphoria. All she could do was watch with wide eyes and quiver her mouth.

Aerrow tried to bring his friend back to reality by gently shaking her. "Katara, say something," he whispered.

The girl blinked twice as she was shook free of her state. Her chest tightened up as she tried to come up with the right thing to say.

Taking in a deep breath, Katara finally said, "Um... hi. I, uh... well, I'm a huge fan of you guys and your music."

Stone Gossard noticed the girl's T-shirt, so he smiled and said, "Yeah, we can see that."

Katara then got a hold of herself and thought of what she really wanted to say. "I mean..." she said, "...that your music truly speaks to me. Whenever I listen to your songs, I feel as though I'm hearing a reflection of myself. And then I figure that the ones singing this kind of music really are talented to create lyrics like they were written in my soul."

Each band member then smiled at what the girl said. They each felt flattered by what she said about their music and they understood exactly why she was a fan.

"Thank you for that," said Vedder. "It's very reassuring when I hear someone give such a heartfelt comment."

June then added her comment. "Say, shouldn't you be at the Mega-Dome right now?" she said.

"That's where we're headed," said McCready, "but we stopped here to greet her." The guitarist then pointed to Katara to show what he meant.

Katara was left stunned at what Mike McCready had just said. "You... stopped here... to greet me?" she said.

"Of course we did," said Ament. "You know, you look awfully familiar."

Now Katara was truly perplexed. "What do you mean?" she wondered.

"We've seen you somewhere before, but I can't put my finger on it," said Cameron. "You've made quite an impact on all of us."

Katara could only turn to her friends for answers. "What's going on here?" she said.

"You're asking the wrong guy," said Sokka.

Stone Gossard thought long and hard but then snapped his fingers as he came up with his realisation.

"I know," said the guitarist. "We saw her on the local news!"

"Local news?" said Aerrow.

"That's right," said Ament. "She's on the local news. There's this story about her."

"What story?" Katara asked.

"Come into the bus and we'll show you," said Vedder.

Katara was both giddy and confused at the same time. Pearl Jam was inviting her onto their tour bus but she couldn't understand the reason. She and all her friends followed the band members into the bus and saw it was furbished like it would be for any other rock star. A large HDTV was hung on the wall, and Eddie Vedder turned it on using the remote.

As soon as the television was on, everyone was stunned to see Katara on the local news. What was even more surprising was that it was displaying the girl performing commendable feats. The first segment was of Katara getting rid of a car by forming an ice pillar underneath it and pushing it into the air before it exploded and hurt anyone. Next, Katara was taming a rampaging sky bison by using her waterbending techniques. Finally, Katara prevented another disaster by pushing a falling stone pillar away from innocent people with the power of water.

The screen then showed the news anchor, Kent Brockman, giving his final statement. "Unfortunately," he said, "we weren't able to interview this girl for her acts of heroism, but one thing is for certain: she is a brave individual who will go to incredible lengths in order to keep anyone from getting in harm's way."

The television was turned off, and Katara knew that those instances were due to the meddling from Vicky. But it was because of those events that she was able to meet Pearl Jam right now, and she was glad that they saw her as a hero.

"I... I'm speechless," said Katara. "I didn't even know about this."

"Well, be honoured that you know now," said Vedder. "And you know what? We saw you give your ticket to that girl. That had to be the most selfless act I've ever seen. A fan like you could've easily gone to our concert, but instead you chose to help out a total stranger in her time of need.

"Anyway, we were talking about it... and we want to invite you to our concert as a V.I.P."

Katara couldn't believe what she just heard. She thought she had given up all hope in going to the concert, and now she was given the opportunity by Eddie Vedder himself to come.

"You mean it?" she asked.

The band members all smiled and nodded.

"You bet," said Ament.

"Totally," said McCready.

"A person with a kind heart as you deserves something like this," said Vedder. "So what do you say?"

Without a moment to think about it, Katara smiled and tears of joy streamed down her face. "Yes!" she said.

Everyone was glad to hear Katara say that, and so they all gave shouts of approval. It was soon interrupted when a roadie named Eddie Riggs (_Brütal Legend_) walked up to the group to get their attention.

"Hey guys," said Eddie, "we can't just sit here shootin' the breeze! We're already behind schedule, so we gotta get to the Mega-Dome now!"

That sudden reminder brought everyone back to focus on what was important.

"You see, Katara?" said Sokka. "Everything turned out good for you in the end."

"You're right," said Katara. "This has to be the best day of my life."

"Well we shouldn't keep you waiting," said Aerrow. "C'mon guys, let's go."

Aerrow and the rest of his friends walked back to the doors and out the tour bus. Before the doors closed, Katara ran up to them for one last goodbye.

"I'll see you all later!" she said.

"And we hope to see you there!" said June. Danny nodded along with his girlfriend.

"Bye, Katara!" said Piper.

"Hope you have a blast!" said Aerrow.

All the others waved and said, "Goodbye!" With that, the doors on the tour bus were shut and it went back on the road towards the Mega-Dome. Katara was now prepared for the greatest experience in her life.

* * *

The inside of the Mega-Dome was bustling with activity. All the fans were already in their spots and cheering for their much-anticipated time to listen to their favourite songs.

The centre of the arena was where the stage was built. The amplifiers were already set up, lights were in their correct positions, the microphones were already hooked up and placed on stage, and a drum set was set up in the back against a large, black wall.

There were only a few minutes left until the concert started and Katara was right in the middle of the action. She truly felt lucky for being there, watching her dream become a reality. A V.I.P. pass was around her neck as proof that she was allowed to be behind the stage. The girl walked around just as all the band members were about to go on stage.

Eddie, the roadie, faced Pearl Jam and said, "Okay guys, the show starts in two minutes so get ready!"

Eddie Vedder faced the girl for one last chance to talk before the show. With a smile, he said, "So Katara, is this anything you pictured it to be?"

Katara just shook her head and replied, "No, it's even better!"

Chuckling, Vedder then said, "Well, we've gotta go, so head down to the front row. You'll be able to see us up-close and personal."

"Great! I know you guys will be awesome!"

Katara was let past security to walk down to the front row. As she made her way, she happened to spot Danny and June a few rows back. The girl took this chance to wave to them and her friends were happy to wave back to her. Now there was only a short time left until one of the greatest events in Toon City would begin.

Now there was no more delaying. All the band members walked out on stage and greeted the crowd. A giant cheer erupted upon everyone seeing Pearl Jam. As everyone cheered, all the band members grabbed their instruments: Vedder, Gossard and McCready had their guitars; Ament had his bass; and Cameron sat at his drums.

Vedder walked up to his microphone and shouted, "Hello, Toon City!"

* * *

The concert was a large event in Toon City and so it was being televised. All across the metropolis, everyone had the chance to witness it.

One such person was Katara and Sokka's father, Hakoda. The man silently watched it in the comfort of his living room when his eyes went wide upon seeing his own daughter in the front row. The very sight of this was so unbelievable that Hakoda dropped the remote and let it hit the floor.

* * *

Meanwhile, Aang was back at his home and was also watching the concert. The young Air Nomad was trying to see if he could make out Katara amongst the crowd, and that's when he spotted her. He knew that his friend had finally made her way to the concert after so much trouble, and it put a smile on the boy's face.

"She did it!" Aang said happily.

* * *

Back in the Black Pit, Jack sat by himself at the bar minding his own business. His attention was then turned to the television hanging by the ceiling.

The burly man watched intently and was a bit surprised to see the girl he helped today happily enjoying herself at the concert. Jack thought this girl got what she deserved after all the hardship he put her through today.

"Way to go, kid," he said.

* * *

In another part of the city, Aerrow and all his friends were looking at HDTV's on display at an electronics store. They were all showing the concert, and the group was hoping to find Katara.

"I don't see her," said Junko.

"Do you think she might be backstage?" said Finn.

Radarr was focused on finding the girl, and that's when he spotted her. Chirping with delight, the furry friend pointed where she was on one of the screens. Everyone looked and they all smiled and cheered.

"Whoo-hoo!" said Aerrow.

"Yeah!" said Piper.

"You go, girl!" said Finn.

"Yes!" said Junko.

"Good going, little sister!" said Sokka.

Stork shrugged his shoulders and thought he might as well add his excitement.

"Hurray," he said indifferently.

* * *

One of the Toon City police precincts was where Vicky was being contained. Her confession to her crimes and her mental collapse had forced her to remain in a holding cell for the time being.

The redhead watched behind bars as Chief Wiggum had the concert on his portable television. Looking closely, she saw the girl she was trying to ruin, front row centre. It made her eyes open wide with disbelief and filled her mind with rage.

"No!" she cried.

The only thing Vicky could do to ease her tension was bang her head against the bars in frustration.

* * *

Back at the concert, Eddie Vedder faced the crowd with a great sense of pride in his heart. He looked down and saw Katara eagerly waiting for them to play.

Taking in a deep breath, the lead singer said, "Here we go!"

Stone Gossard then got ready to play their first song. He strummed his guitar gracefully that it echoed throughout the stadium with intensity.

All the fans immediately recognised the song as _Alive_ and they all cheered. Vedder then sang:

_Son, she said, have I got a little story for you_

_What you thought was your daddy was nothin' but a..._

June was so grateful to her boyfriend, Danny, that she leaned in and kissed him passionately on the lips. Danny returned the kiss with one of his own as the music continued playing.

_While you were sittin' home alone at age thirteen_

_Your real daddy was dyin'..._

_Sorry you didn't see him_

_But I'm glad we talked..._

The crowd then all sang along with the lyrics in unison and created a harmonious melody with the combined effort of the instruments.

_Oh I, oh, I'm still alive_

_Hey, I, I, oh, I'm still alive_

_Hey I, oh, I'm still alive_

_Hey... oh..._

Up on the stage, the lights flashed and danced as they added the brilliant effects to the artists.

_Oh, she walks slowly, across the young man's room_

_She said I'm ready... for you_

_I can't remember anything to this very day_

'_Cept the look, the look..._

_Oh, you know where, now I can't see, I just stare..._

_I, I'm still alive_

_Hey I, but, I'm still alive_

_Hey I, boy, I'm still alive_

_Hey I, I, I, I'm still alive, yeah_

All the band members played so vigorously that Katara was so glad she could see them play live.

_Ooh yeah..._

Now the fans were shouting even louder as the song got into its next verse.

_Yeah, yeah, yeah_

Katara contemplated as she gazed up at the stage. Never before had the music been so marvellous that hearing it from the artists themselves, rather than on a radio touched her in a rhythmical way.

"This is the best time I've had in my life!" she shouted happily.

_Is something wrong, she said?_

_Of course there is_

_You're still alive, she said_

_Oh, and do I deserve to be_

_Is that the question?_

_And if so... if so..._

_Who answers...? Who answers...?_

_I, oh, I'm still alive_

_Hey I, oh, I'm still alive_

_Hey I, but, I'm still alive_

_Yeah I, ooh, I'm still alive_

_Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah_

The ending guitar solo played, and Katara was glad to be in the concert. This one moment had truly made her happy and all the heartache she went through on this day was worth seeing her all-time favourite band perform.

**THE END

* * *

**

BlueTiger321: Well, that's the end to my story and I hope you all enjoyed it.

Katara: Wooh! That was the greatest show ever!

BlueTiger321: I'm sure it was. Anyway, a big thanks goes out to everyone who read my story and I hope you're all eager for the next one coming in the near future. So, until then...

Katara: Read and review!


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